12 Things To See in the UN Headquarters, New York, USA

It is my dream to be a diplomat. I am fulfiiled that finally I have visited the UN Headquarters in New York. Hopefully, I can do it next time, not already as a tourist but as the representative of my country or some respected organizations.

You have to coordinate in advance with the United Nations Visitors Centre if you are interested to visit the UN Headquarters. It would also be cool if you wear your national costume. I did it by wearing a high-class barong!

Here are my12 Things to See in the UN Headquarters, New York, USA!

1.) UN Security Council Chamber 

The Security Council aims to maintain international peace and security. It has 15 Members, and each Member has one vote. Under the Charter, all Member States are obligated to comply with Council decisions.

The interiors of UN Security Council Chamber were donated by Norway. The Norwegian government hired the leading Norwegian architect Arnstein Rynning Arneberg who was also famous for his Oslo City Hall, Volda Church, Osla Royal Mausoleum projects.

The mural in the chamber was Norwegian artist Per Lasson Krohg’s work. I googled the possible name of the artwork but I was unsuccessful. The theme though of the painting symbolizes the promise of future peace and individual freedom. And as a famous item in the Norse Mythology, please take a look at that centre table which is actually horse-shoe shape!

2.) Trusteeship Council Chamber 

The interiors of the Trusteeship Council Chamber were donated by Denmark. The Danish government hired Danish architect Finn Juhl in 1952 then restored in 2010-2013 by Danish design duo Kasper Salto and Thomas Sigsgaard.

The Trusteeship Council promotes the advancement of the inhabitants of Trust Territories and their progressive development towards self-government or independence. As all Trust Territories have attained self-government or independence, either as separate States or by joining neighbouring independent countries, the Council amended its rules of procedure to drop the obligation to meet annually and agreed to meet as occasion required — by its decision or the decision of its President, or at the request of a majority of its members or the General Assembly or the Security Council.

3.) UN Economic and Social Council Chamber

The UN Economic and Social Council aims to advance the three dimensions of sustainable development – economic, social and environmental. It is a platform for debate and innovative thinking, forging consensus on ways forward, and coordinating efforts to achieve internationally agreed goals.

The chamber was donated by Sweden. The Swedish Government hired modernist Swedish architect Sven Markelius who is also responsible for the creation of model suburbs of Vällingby (1950s) and Farsta (1960s).

4.) UN General Assembly Hall 

It is the largest chamber in UN Headquarters. Every year in September, all the 193 Member States meet in this unique forum at Headquarters in New York for the General Assembly session.

5.) Riverside View

6.) Daily Military Expenditure Worldwide Stats 

7.) UN Sustainable Development Goals 

8.) The Golden Rule by Norman Rockwell

Gifted by the United States of America in 1985 to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of the U.N. In an article entitled, “I Paint the Golden Rule,” Rockwell stated, “Like everyone else I am concerned with the world situation and like everyone else, I’d like to contribute something to help. The only way I can contribute is through my pictures. So for a long time I had been trying to think of a subject that might be of some help. Then one day, (I don’t know why or how), I suddenly got the idea that the “Golden Rule- Do unto others as You would have them Do Unto You- was the subject I was looking for. Right away, I got intensely excited. But how could I picture the Golden Rule? I began to make all sorts of sketches. Then I remembered that down in the cellar of my studio was the ten-foot-long charcoal drawing of my United Nations picture, which I had never finished. I hauled it upstairs. In it I had tried to depict all the peoples of the world gathered together. This was just what I wanted to express about the Golden Rule.’

9.) Mosaic Panel by Unknown artist from Fez

It is a huge mosaic with decorative wood frame gifted by King Hassan II of Morocco last April 3, 1963. It is an Andalusian style of the 12th century composed entirely by hand by an artist in Fez. There are three inscriptions, the one on the wood frame is from Chapter 49, paragraph 13 of the Qur’an, known as the Surat El-Hajurat. It says, “Oh, mankind! We created you from a male and female and made you into nations and tribes, that we may know each other. The most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you.” The inscription on the green portion of the mosaic is the Preamble of the United NAtions in Arabic; the inscription in the red circle reads: “Charter of the United nAtions” in Arabic.

Note: UN Preamble:

WE THE PEOPLES OF THE UNITED NATIONS DETERMINED

• to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and

• to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and

• to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and

• to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

AND FOR THESE ENDS

• to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours, and

• to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security, and

• to ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest, and

• to employ international machinery for the promotion of the economic and social advancement of all peoples,

HAVE RESOLVED TO COMBINE OUR EFFORTS TO ACCOMPLISH THESE AIMS

Accordingly, our respective Governments, through representatives assembled in the city of San Francisco, who have exhibited their full powers found to be in good and due form, have agreed to the present Charter of the United Nations and do hereby establish an international organization to be known as the United Nations.

10.) Non-violence by Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd

11.) Artworks

12.) Artworks