Original Item: One-of-a-kind. Just purchased from a large military auction. This hand painted cloth flag is not marked with the usual battle quotes such as "Banzai", and "Good Luck for Bravery". This flag is marked on the right side with 鎌 倉 東 京 which is for the Coastal Town of Kamakura, Japan though the characters read as “Kamakura Tokyo. Kamakura, officially Kamakura City, is a city of Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. It is located in the Kanto region on the island of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 persons per km² over the total area of 39.67 km2 (15.32 sq mi). Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939.

The flag is contained in a frame, and is made of what appears to be rayon, with the red "sun" dyed into the middle. Overall the flag is in good condition with some tearing present and is the real deal: a genuine USGI "bring back"!

The writing is still clearly legible, and this would make a fine display piece for a wall or glass table, or even a translation project.

Ready to display!

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.