The Victory Arch, also called the Swords of Qādisīyah, stands in Zawra Park in central Baghdad, Iraq, and now lies in the International Zone. Khaled al-Rahal designed it, and Mohammed Ghani Hikmat took over after al-Rahal died in 1987. Saddam Hussein drew the concept sketch. The Iraqi government built it from 1986 to 1989, and it opened on August 8, 1989.
The monument has two arches, each formed by a pair of hands holding crossed swords that meet at a central point. It is 131 feet (40 meters) tall and uses concrete, stone, stainless steel and bronze. The swords are stainless steel, and each blade weighs about 24 tons. The hands and arms are bronze.
Concrete plinths hold nets of about 5,000 helmets in total. The hands are hollow, and visitors can climb into them. Crews restored the monument in 2011 after a 2007 demolition attempt was halted.
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