Original Imperial Japanese WWII 387th Infantry Regiment Occupation-Captured Meatball Flag with 39 Signatures Including Lt. Colonel Dennis J. McMahon - 29 x 39”

Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is a lovely USGI Bring Back from WWII: an original Japanese WWII "Meatball" National flag, captured and personalized by the soldiers that captured it. They added their names and hometowns, with 39 signatures total. The officers of the unit added their names as well, with the highest ranking being Lieutenant Colonel Dennis J. McMahon, which helps to identify the unit, the 387th Infantry Regiment, 97th Infantry Division. This unit fought in Central Europe at the end of World War II, then being sent to Japan for Occupation duty, where this flag was captured and signed.

The flag measures 29 x 39”, and looks to be made from silk or rayon, and is in fair shape with the leather tabs still intact with their ropes. The body of the flag is white, with a red "sun round" dyed into the middle. The flag is in very good condition which makes sense as this was not a battlefield-captured flag but instead a flag signed by men during the Occupation of Japan. It has the expected age toning, and areas where the fabric has torn due to wear. This example would look amazing in a frame. 

This is a fantastic flag that is worthy of further research. As noted, the men served with the 387th Infantry Regiment, 97th ID, and there are many names to search through! A great USGI bring back flag from the Occupation of Japan after WWII, ready to research and display!

The 97th infantry division left Le Havre on 16 June 1945 aboard the SS Brazil, arriving at Camp Shanks on 24 June. After a 30-day leave, the division reassembled at Fort Bragg, crossed the US by troop train and on 1 September embarked aboard the USS Grundy for redeployment to the Pacific, arriving at Cebu, Philippine Islands on 16 September and then sailing to Japan for occupation duty, the first unit previously stationed in Europe to arrive in Japan after the end of the war. Arriving at Yokohama on 25 September 1945, the division relieved the 43rd Infantry Division and established its headquarters at Mitsugahara Airfield in Kumagaya. By December the 97th had reached its maximum deployment through six prefectures: Saitama, Gunma, Nagano, Niigata, Fukushima, and Tochigi.