Punchbowl National Cemetery

Historic Honolulu attraction

The Punchbowl National Cemetery, located in Hololulu on the island of Oahu, is a monument that rests in the most unusual of places: inside Puowaina, an extinct volcanic crater. Historically, Puowaina was the site of secret “alli” (or royal) burials, as well as the location where those who broke “kapus” (or taboos) were sacrificed. The cemetery is often referred to as the “hill of sacrifice,” which is a loose translation of the Hawaiian word Puowaina.

The 116-acre cemetery was built in 1948 and has come to honor the soldiers who served in the Pacific theater during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. A memorial was erected by the American Battle Monuments Commission in 1964. It rests high up on the walls of the crater, where visitors can overlook the cemetery, and consists of a chapel, two galleries and a monumental staircase which leads from the base of the crater up to the “Court of Honor.” The staircase is surrounded by ten “Courts of the Missing,” on whose walls are written the names of 26,280 American soldiers, who were recorded as lost, missing, or buried at sea. In front of the central tower, stands “Lady Columbia,” a grand 30-foot statue of a female figure standing on a symbolic prow of a US Navy carrier, holding a laurel branch in her left hand. Beneath her is an inscription of the words of President Lincoln: “The Solemn Pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.”

The Punchbowl National Cemetery and memorial are open daily for public viewings and on the weekend are staffed by veterans. Visitors can ask to view particular graves and are welcome to bring fresh flowers or flower leis to leave on the graves.