British & Commonwealth Military Badge Forum

Recent Books by Forum Members

   

Go Back   British & Commonwealth Military Badge Forum > Everything Else > Other Military Topics

 Other Pages: Galleries, Links etc.
Glossary  Books by Forum Members     Canadian Pre 1914    CEF    CEF Badge Inscriptions   Canadian post 1920     Canadian post 1953     British Cavalry Badges     Makers' Marks    Pipers' Badges  Canadian Cloth Titles  Books  SEARCH
 
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 04-07-13, 07:18 PM
BWEF's Avatar
BWEF BWEF is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,646
Default Japanese Reader Sought

Are any members of this forum able to read Japanese? I am assuming that the two cards below actually are in Japanese?

Can anybody tell me exactly what these cards are, and what are the fancy postmarks?

Thanks in advance.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg Japan1.jpg (24.4 KB, 69 views)
File Type: jpg Japan2.jpg (33.4 KB, 65 views)
__________________
Orationem pulchram non habens, scribo ista linea in lingua Latina
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 11-07-13, 01:47 AM
BWEF's Avatar
BWEF BWEF is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,646
Default

Well, if nobody can read these cards, can anybody confirm that they are Japanese, rather than from say China?
__________________
Orationem pulchram non habens, scribo ista linea in lingua Latina
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 11-07-13, 05:24 AM
Mike Jackson's Avatar
Mike Jackson Mike Jackson is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 6,329
Default

In my opinion they are Japanese - historically the characters were identical in Japanese and written Chinese, but the clue is the use of the chrysanthemum in the design - that I believe is a Japanese tradition.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 11-07-13, 04:48 PM
Chacal's Avatar
Chacal Chacal is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: North of the Wall of Antoninus Pius.
Posts: 1,776
Default

I sent images of these to a friend in Tokyo, he thinks the “10.7.1” refers to the 10th year of Showa (AD 1935), although it could equally be the 10th year of Meiji, Taisho etc. I’m hoping he can give more info, but he seems to think they are definitely from Japan. I’ll keep you posted.

Graham
__________________
I am looking to purchase items from the British Administration Police & Prison Services in Cyrenaica & Tripolitania; Eritrea & Ethiopia; Somalia (f. Italian Somaliland) & British Somaliland; & the Dodecanese: insignia, documents, photographs etc.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 11-07-13, 05:36 PM
Rob Miller's Avatar
Rob Miller Rob Miller is online now
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Devonshire
Posts: 2,190
Default

Just had a look in an old Stanley Gibbons catalogue, can't see this as a specific Japanese stamp but its very similar to lots of pre war designs and as Mike says they all have the chrysanthemum in the design.

Rob
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 12-07-13, 10:54 AM
John Mulcahy's Avatar
John Mulcahy John Mulcahy is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 2,291
Default

One of my work team has a Japaneses spouse and speaks some Japanese himself.

I have had them look at these and here is their input.

Postcards from pre war Japan. Time period for both look like Showa period....these particular ones are about 1935.

First one was mailed from Guma prefecture. Cost was about 1.5 yen to mail. Emperor seal is the chrysanthemum. Samurai on horse back was Kusunori Masashige, Kamakura period born in 1129. Know for strategic tactics on the battlefield.


The second one was mailed from Nagano. Second seems to show some German influence.....maybe a German village with hiker.


John
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 13-07-13, 07:39 AM
Chacal's Avatar
Chacal Chacal is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: North of the Wall of Antoninus Pius.
Posts: 1,776
Default

My mate got back to me with a little more information, the locations agree with those John's friends gave.

Here is his message:

"I am sure this is from Japan because the green letters above say 「郵便はがき」("postal card")in Japanese. You should read the letters on the card from the right to the left. And the price of the stamp is 0.015 yen.

Unfortunately I could not tell the details of the postmarks (red circles with dates and pictures). The left one says Gunma(群馬)prefecture and the right is from Nagano(長野)prefecture.
Each of the mark has more letters but unfortunately I could not read them all.

I guess the postmark on the right card was stamped at a post office on/near mountains in Nagano. It seems like a climbing memorabilium. There are post offices on the top of some high mountains in Japan like Mt. FUji and such offices offer special postmark for climbers. I guess the right postmark is one of them."

Hope this helps - it's interesting to find out what they are, but also that Japanese has changed so much that a native speaker has difficulty in deciphering it. That said, presumably postmarks in Japan, as elsewhere, have an abbreviated version of the location which would be difficult for all but someone in the know to read.

Graham
__________________
I am looking to purchase items from the British Administration Police & Prison Services in Cyrenaica & Tripolitania; Eritrea & Ethiopia; Somalia (f. Italian Somaliland) & British Somaliland; & the Dodecanese: insignia, documents, photographs etc.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 13-07-13, 08:57 PM
BWEF's Avatar
BWEF BWEF is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,646
Default

Many thanks to all who have replied to this thread, in particular to those who "went the extra mile" and made enquiries of their own.

How did we ever manage in the days before the internet? Other than putting stuff in the "unknown" box for 20 years!

Thanks again to all concerned.
__________________
Orationem pulchram non habens, scribo ista linea in lingua Latina
Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump

mhs link

All times are GMT. The time now is 08:24 AM.


Powered by: vBulletin
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.