The Peace Monument is considered an important symbol of peace at the United Nations Headquarters. It was cast in bronze in Zagreb, Croatia in 1954 and the 33-foot-high pedestal is made of marble from the Croatian island of Brač. The monument is a statue of a woman riding a horse with an olive branch in one hand and a globe in the other hand, symbolically leading the nations of the world towards peace. It was created by prominent Croatian sculptor Antun Augustinčić (1900 – 1979).

The then-country of Yugoslavia made and placed the monument at the United Nations Headquarters in New York in 1954. The country wanted to give a gift to the UN that would emphasize its commitment to world peace and commissioned Augustinčić to execute this idea. The artist proposed an equestrian statue that would symbolize world peace. He said, “peace would be far better protected if the decision rested with women instead of men”. In response to his choice of a horse, a war animal, he said, “…we must fight for peace”. 

In 1952, the artist travelled to New York to choose the location of the monument. Architect Wallace K. Harrison, the Director of Planning for the UN Headquarters, and Augustinčić decided the monument should be installed in front of the General Assembly building alongside the northern entrance, where thousands of visitors pass every day. Augustinčić wanted to place the monument in the corner of the plateau so the silhouette would be visible against the East River. The placement of the monument was meant to connect the cuboids of the UN buildings.  
 
On 2 December 1954, the Peace Monument was unveiled. UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld, chairman of the Ninth UN General Assembly Eelco Van Klefens, and Head of the Yugoslav Permanent Mission to the UN Dr. Jože Brilej were present at the ceremony. Artist Augustinčić could not attend because he was working on a new project, Monument to the Victims of Fascism, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.