Can anyone here help identify this?

SLQ

Hi,

I've searched through more than a few books on Asian coins and cannot find this one.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

coinpictures

Seems fishy to me...

dcamp78

The characters look to be Korean...

satootoko

It will take a while to type the entire post, but for now let's just say that it is absolutely a Japanese medal. More to come.

satootoko

The obverse shows a carp banner, not an actual fish. The three lines in the mouth represent the strings by which the paper or cloth fish is attached to a pole. Traditionally the Japanese fly as many carp banners on Boy's Day (May 5) as there are male children in the household.



The reverse congratulates an (un-named) prince on his birthday. Then crown prince (and now Emperor) Akihito was born on December 23, 1933. On the Imperial Japanese Calendar, use of which was essentially discontinued at the end of World War II, but which had been little used for many years before that, our 1933 was the Imperial year 2594, based on the founding of the Japanese Imperial Dynasty by the (probably mythical) Emperor Jimmu in 660 BCE.

The use of "2" in the date rather than "12" raises a question about the relationship of the Imperial and western calendars. If the Imperial year started in the late fall, December was the second month. If it began in mid-winter as the western year does, December is the twelfth month.

The BB recalls participating in an elementary school celebration of some sort in the year 2600 (1939), probably on the February holiday known in English as "National Foundation Day" (Kenkoku kinen no hi), honoring the ascension of Jimmu to the Chrysanthemum Throne. Unfortunately, she can't recall the relationship of the Imperial month to the western calendar; and so far I have found nothing to explain the "2"/"12" question.

SLQ

Roy,

Thank you very much for this information. I've been trying to get info on this, off and on, for over 40 years and you are the first and only person who had an answer.

thanks again,

Terry

satootoko

I've been in touch with a collector I know in Osaka, and he showed the picture to someone he describes as a "knowledgeable person", who had an explanation for the date.

I was a year off on the date (), which is actually February 23, 1934. Most likely, therefore, that is the date the medal was issued, in honor of the 2-month-old Crown Prince.

The Marunaka company probably issued the medal, at least in part, as an advertising piece for its "tenkaichi-koinobori (world's best carp banners)".

All in all a most interesting piece!

SLQ

Very interesting. Thanks again Roy.

sumnom

On the obverse, the larger text reads, "Commemoration." The text in the box is something along the lines of "The entire world [flies] the carp banner."

On the reverse, the first line of text reads, "Offering congratulations on the birth of His Majesty the Imperial Crown Prince."

The second line reads, "XX Youth Association." I can't read the first two characters.

I don't know what's in the middle.

This medal was issued by the XX Youth Association, not a company. I am sorry that I cannot make out the name of the association.

SLQ

Thanks! Your help is greatly appreciated.

satootoko

<< <i>I don't know what's in the middle. >>

The character "naka" inside a circle. The Japanese word for circle is "Maru", so the combination becomes "Marunaka".

sumnom

Ooooooh. Thank you. I never would have gotten that! Then that must be the Marunaka company logo then, yes?

Could we then say that the Marunaka company produced the medal for the youth association? Do you have any leads on the name of the association?

sumnom

OK, here is a news flash! I consulted with a (somewhat) trusted colleague who identified the the first character of the name of the youth association as "maru." The second character is a variant of the one in the logo. Thus:

It's the Marunaka Youth Association! The first two characters are "maru" and "naka."

How does that sound?

shirohniichan

<< <i>OK, here is a news flash! I consulted with a (somewhat) trusted colleague who identified the the first character of the name of the youth association as "maru." The second character is a variant of the one in the logo. Thus:

It's the Marunaka Youth Association! The first two characters are "maru" and "naka."

How does that sound? >>



That sounds right to me.

Koutai Hidenka Gotanjou Houki
Marunaka Seinen Kai

sumnom

Thanks for dropping by, Shiroh.

sumnom

I have been thinking about the Marunaka Company and the Marunaka Youth Association. I am assuming that the youth association is sponsored by the company. Does anyone know if such company associations were the norm for Japanese companies of the period? Are there such organizations now? I tried googling the Marunaka Youth Association but came up with nothing.

ricko

Great information thanks Sumnom and Shiro.... Looks like the token/medal will be difficult to come by... too bad, I find it quite intriquing... Cheers, RickO

SLQ

Thanks everyone. In case anyone is interested, my father bought this in Tokyo in 1945 or 1946. I'm not sure if he knew what is was. He gave it to me about 40 years ago for doing well on some exam in school.
Over the years I tried finding information on it , mostly from books on Japanese coins, but never got a clue.
All the info provided here is really appreciated. Thanks to all.

sumnom

That's a great story, SLQ. Thank you for sharing the story and the medal with us.

Stork

Very cool! I missed some of this thread earlier, thanks for the pix and great information. My only contribution is that the medal definitely looks like the carp banners we have , which is almost all I can tell you about Boy's day. I'm sure all my old Japanese neighbors would be horrified at how long we left the flags up this year. Fortunately our US neighbors didn't seem to notice.