Original Item: Only One Available. This is a nice condition Japanese Imperial Army Type 45 Officer's Visor hat. It has a body of brown/green wool with a top panel seam of red piping, matching the color of the red wool cap band. There are no markings, but a period Japanese newspaper was inserted behind the sweatband to help the cap keep its shape.

The center front of the cap features a brass Imperial Japanese Army Star, with brass chinstrap buttons. The black visor is faux leather covered cardboard, and is in good condition, showing wear and cracking from service and age. The gloss black top shows a lovely pattern of checking and crazing, while the underside is brown but painted over. The faux patent leather chinstrap is still present and in good condition, with just a bit of wear on the edges.

The interior retains its original lining but there are no markings. The original oilcloth sweatband is retained, which is heavily cracking.

A very nice example, ready to display!

The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor of Japan as supreme commander of the army and the navy. Later an Inspectorate General of Aviation became the third agency with oversight of the army. During wartime or national emergencies, the nominal command functions of the emperor would be centralized in an Imperial General Headquarters (IGHQ), an ad-hoc body consisting of the chief and vice chief of the Army General Staff, the Minister of the Army, the chief and vice chief of the Naval General Staff, the Inspector General of Aviation, and the Inspector General of Military Training.