This is a very interesting bit of history I thought would be worth sharing. It is a canteen taken from a fallen Japanese soldier during WW2. My friend’s father in law was a Marine during the war in the 1st Division I believe it was. At any rate. He kept it from the soldier he killed and as the war went in, he carved.scratched/engraved the name and date of every battle and invasion he was in.
You can also see some of the trench art scratched into it by the Japanese soldier. The Japanese flag being on the canteen already was likely the reason the Marine picked this one to keep in the first place.
Some manufacturing marks, or some such. I am not expert on WW2 Japanese canteen markings, so I have no real idea. Fascinating none the less.
And the Marine who brought it back, Earning many medals by the wars end.
Certainly is not something you see often and I would like to personally think my friend for letting me share this unique item with everyone.
My father did the same thing in Europe. We have the second set which he did as the first was taken from him. He was told ‘If you are captured they will know where we were’. He said ‘ We were shooting at each other, they know where we were.’