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The motifs on the surface of the body fabric include; 3 singing soldiers; song scripts/music scores; torpedo (Bangalore torpedo -- used for clearing mines and barbed wire); tank; explosion.

The body and sleeve fabrics are different -- the body is wool; the sleeves are rayon.

The three soldiers are likely "Bakudan Sanyushi" (literally, "three heroic human bombs") who became famous for dying in an explosion in Manchuria in 1932. This event was immoralized in movies and stories; even food products were named after them at the time. In an historical re-telling of the event, one Japanese national recounts:

"In Japanese[language] school, we would sing Japanese war songs and we would hear stories of Japanese heroes. One outstanding story that I remember is an incident in Manchuria, Bakudan Sanyushi [Three Heroic Human Bombs], they used to call it. To break through the barbed-wire encroachment, these three Japanese soldiers had to sneak up to the obstacle with their bandoliers, and then I think they lost their lives putting the bandoliers through this barbed-wire object, and then blew it up. This was one of the favorite stories in Japan, of heroism of the Japanese soldiers."

The design reflects Japan's hyper-nationalism of the times, and was worn to show one's support for the war effort.

Kimono such as this one belong to the so-called war-time "wearable propaganda" genre of textiles of the early 20th century. Unlike the propaganda textiles of the West, which were mainly worn by women, these textiles were predominantly worn by men and young boys in Japan. They were produced and worn as part of a patriotic response to Japan at war.

As well, rather than being worn on the outside (as with propaganda textiles of the West), the Japanese often preferred to display their patriotism quietly, inwardly, on under-garments (nagajuban, haori jacket linings, etc.) that were hidden from public view and seen only by people close to the wearer. In this respect, they represent a continuation of the uniquely Japanese fashion trend of "iki," a style of dress begun by the wealthy merchants of late Edo (1800s) whereby extravagant, expensive garments were worn on the inside, initially as a means of bypassing then-legal edicts that restricted outward displays of wealth; iki eventlally became a highly appreciated aesthetic in its own right. Today, iki is associated with the Japanese penchant for "hidden beauty."

MATERIAL
Outer: Finely woven wool (mosulin).
Inner: Cotton.

DATE: Body 1910s; Sleeves 1920s.

MEASUREMENTS
Width -- 51 in (129.5 cm);
Length -- 52 in. (132 cm).

CONDITION
Excellent-good. Only very slight fading (body fabric). Lining is very clean (no stains).