Original Item: One-of-a-kind. Just purchased at the estate auction of a longtime pacific war collector. This hand painted cloth flag is marked with battle quotes such as "Banzai", and "Good Luck". It has a good amount of Japanese writing, which we unfortunately have not been able to translate. A lot the writing radiates out from the "sun", which are usually the names of many friends and family. 

The flag measures approximately 30"H x 34"W, and is made of what looks to be standard cotton cloth, with the red "sun" dyed into the middle. The writing is mostly clear, and would make a great research project for someone able to read WWII Era Japanese.

The flag is in great shape, with only some tiny holes, and very little age toning. It still has the original paper corner reinforcements and corner ties, which are in great shape.

Flag is in very good condition and is the real deal: a genuine USGI "bring back"!

The Good Luck Flag, known as hinomaru yosegaki (日の丸 寄せ書き) in the Japanese language, was a traditional gift for Japanese servicemen deployed during the military campaigns of the Empire of Japan, though most notably during World War II. The flag given to a soldier was a national flag signed by friends and family, often with short messages wishing the soldier victory, safety, and good luck.

The Japanese call their country's flag hinomaru, which translates literally to "sun-round", referencing the red circle on a white field. When the hinomaru was signed, the Japanese characters were usually written vertically, and radiated outward from the edge of the red circle. This practice is referenced in the second term, yosegaki, meaning "sideways-writing". The phrase hinomaru-yosegaki can be interpreted as "To write sideways around the red sun", describing the appearance of the signed flag. This particular example completely unique is written in old KANJI the writing are mainly Japanese names of this soldier's family and friends with quotes and phrases.