Imperial Japan, Trophy Flag, USS Revenge, 1st US Ship into Tokyo Bay, WWII.
This war trophy is a silk Japanese ensign from the Second World War. 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 who sought to acquire them from the Japanese enemy.
This flag in particular was acquired by crewmen of the USS Revenge who inscribed upon the flags rays in romaji a list of the Japanese ports-of-call, "Tokyo August 27, 1945 First United States Mine Sweeper in Japan - Yokohama, Nagoya, Isenouni, Akinaoa, Bungo, Siraight, Okinown, Ratinato, Palau, Ulithi, Guantacana, Tainouchi, Yokosuka, Kyushu, Inlanosea, Beppowa, and Hirowan".
Thea minesweeper USS Revenge was the first allied ship to enter Tokyo Bay after the Japanese surrendered on 19 August 1945. She steamed into Tokyo Bay on 27 August 1945, the USS Revenge made sure the anchorage was safe for Allied ships. The USS Revenge was then posted fro occupation duty at the navy base at Sasebo.
This flag was formerly part of the collections of Army Ranger Museum of New York City and while not directly associated with the Rangers, it was a part of the museum's mission to "…Attempt to give veterans a view of the meaning attached to their sacrifices." For this reason the museum occasionally keeps some items such as this flag.
Exhibition History:
Army Ranger Museum
New York, New York.
1993 to 1997
Provenance: Acquired at auction, Property of the Army Ranger Museum Auction, 18 November 1997, Butterfields & Butterfields, San Francisco, CA.
ZFC Significant Flag
Sources:
War trophy, Wikipedia, 11 October 2011, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_trophy
Good Luck Flags (Hinomaru Yosegaki), Nambu World, 8 October 2011, from:http://members.shaw.ca/ursacki/flags2.htm
USS Revenge (AM-110), Wikipedia, 11 October 2011, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Revenge_%28AM-110%29
USS Ellyson (DD-454, Wikipedia, 11 October 2011, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Ellyson_%28DD-454%29
The Presidential Debate, Washington University in St. Louis, May 29, 2012,From: http://news.wustl.edu/Documents/presdebateflags.pdf
(Formerly in the U.S. Army Ranger museum Sub-collection.)
