Comes with hand-signed C.O.A.

Over the course of World War II in the Pacific theater soldiers and Marines were always on the lookout for bring back souvenirs on the battlefield. These souvenirs would often be items taken directly off the fallen Japanese soldiers in the very place they fell.Popular bring back items were always Japanese flags, swords, helmets, caps, and especially personal photographs. What made photographs so easy to “bring back” or take when looking for war trophies was they were flat, lightweight, and easy to carry…something that a soldier or Marine found useful and handy while still on an active battlefield in the Pacific. These photos would be stuffed into their pockets, bags, and sometimes even passed by U.S. ARMY or NAVAL censors in airmail back to the United States.

What makes this particular photograph so rare is the personal meaning that it most likely had to the fallen Japanese soldier that it was taken from. Based on historical documentation and interviews of Japanese POW’s their family signed rising sun flag and family photographs were the most important items they carried on them from home. These photographs were most likely of the Japanese soldier’s wife, brother/s (sometimes even seen in their military uniform), sister/s, etc.