Comes with a hand-signed C.O.A.

This original and museum-grade World War II “TOKYO BAY - CENTRAL JAPAN” map is dated 1945 and was made as the U.S. military forces moved closer to mainland Japan. This combat map of Tokyo Bay shows heavy use and wear.

This map is an incredible piece of World War II history and the surrender of the Japanese forces in Tokyo Bay. This issued map was printed months prior to both atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6th and August 9th, 1945. The surrender of Imperial Japan was announced by Japanese Emperor Hirohito on August 15th and formally signed on September 2th, 1945, bringing the hostilities of World War II to a close.

This map was produced for the impending invasion of Japan, however, following the Japanese surrender, this map was then used in aid of the surrender of Japan and the occupation of U.S. and allied military forces following the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945—marking the end not just to World War II but to 15 years of Japan’s military rampage across Asia.

President Truman appointed MacArthur to head the Allied occupation of Japan as Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers. For the site of Japan’s formal surrender, Truman chose the USS Missouri, a battleship that had seen considerable action in the Pacific and was named after Truman’s native state. MacArthur instructed to preside over the surrender, held off the ceremony until September 2 in order to allow time for representatives of all the major Allied powers to arrive.

On Sunday, September 2, more than 250 Allied warships lay at anchor in Tokyo Bay. The flags of the United States, Britain, the Soviet Union, and China fluttered above the deck of the Missouri. Just after 9 a.m. Tokyo time, Japanese Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signed on behalf of the Japanese government. General Yoshijiro Umezu then signed for the Japanese armed forces, and his aides wept as he made his signature.