A Japanese Good Luck Flags used by Japanese Soldiers during WWII.
This small silk Japanese flag is a war trophy. Surviving Japanese flags from WWII are plentiful as nearly every Japanese soldier or sailor owned one. These "hinomaru yosegaki" or "Good Luck Flags" were a prized trophy for US soldiers, sailors and marines. This flag has the reinforcing corners and ties typical of Japanese flags made during WWII. Although these reinforcing corners are typical of flags made in Japan, the fact that these are made of cardboard indicates late war manufacture when other materials like leather became unobtainable.
In ancient Greece and Rome, military victories were often formally commemorated with a display of captured arms and standards and cultural objects, called war trophies. In the Middle Ages; the European wars of the 17th and 18th centuries; and during the Napoleonic Wars variations of this were also practiced wherein armies returning home would often display flags captured from the enemy in public buildings or churches. In a public space, flags were displayed as a moral builder, an overt symbol of victory or as a reminder of a past martial or naval accomplishment; while in a church or place of worship they might pay homage to the Divinity for granting victory, or represent a symbol of the power of the providence of God for their cause.
In the American Civil War official protocols were evolved for the disposition of captured colors. The act was considered worthy of decoration or promotion. More recently the World Wars saw the wholesale confiscation of enemy property including flags. In 20th century it became common for individual soldiers to return home with trophies and souvenirs, such as enemy flags.
During WWII returning US soldiers from both the European and Pacific theatres of war sought, and highly prized both German and Japanese flags, which coincidentally were plentiful as a result of both political and cultural practices. The possession of a captured enemy flag is often considered the ultimate war trophy; literally one has "captured the flag." However, many of these are not actually captured on battle, or even battlefield pick-ups. They are flags encountered or acquired as the result of other activities; often rear echelon pieces acquired through purchase or trade.
This hinomaru yosegaki lacks any inscriptions and sadly the circumstances of its use and acquisition have been lost to history but it is typical of the Good Luck Flags carried by Japanese soldiers and sailors.
Provenance: Acquired by purchase in the 1970s with the understanding that it was a GI bring- back from WWII.
Sources:
War Trophy, Wikipedia, 30 November 2011, from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_trophy
Good Luck Flags (Hinomaru Yosegaki), Nambu World, 30 November 2011, from: http://members.shaw.ca/ursacki/flags2.htm
Image Credits:
Zaricor Flag Collection
