If you do not know why a red cross is painted on ambulances, it is worth visiting Geneva's Museum of the Red Cross and Crescent.
The idea of creating such an organization came to the young Swiss Henri Dunant in 1859, when he witnessed the Battle of Solferino, during which about 40,000 soldiers on each side were killed or wounded. Shocked by the scale of human suffering, a few months after returning from the war he proposed a project for a committee to help the wounded, and in 1863 founded the "Red Cross".
This good cause attracted volunteers not only in Switzerland, but all over the world as well. At the moment, the organization includes about 100 million people from 183 countries. Their large-scale work is presented as fully as possible in the Red Cross and Crescent Museum. Here you can also trace the entire history of the movement - in manuscripts, slides, photographs, and installations.
"We are all responsible for everything and for everyone" - these words of Dostoevsky are engraved in the main hall of the museum, whose entire exhibition is devoted to the theme of human compassion.
So why did the Red Cross become the symbol of aid to those affected? When creating the community, Henri Dunant faced the task of making the emblem recognizable and associated with Switzerland. A simple solution - the reversed colors of the Swiss flag - gave the organization this logo. The Crescent joined later. Now there is also a third equal symbol in this emblem - the red crystal. What it means will be explained to you at the museum. By the way, the price of the admission ticket includes an audio guide in many languages of the world, including Russian. It is easy to get to the museum if you walk from the center toward the UN building.
