WWII Japanese Headband...Real or fake??

[aussie mick]

Hmm... I too am a Collector. The only way you could say for sure is if you pulled it off the poor guy's head. However... I am a Deputy Sheriff also. I have not had it checked to see if it is blood. Did not want to go that far. But the staining is consistant with a head band tied around someones head that received the wound prior to taking the headband off. Not just random staining from being hap hazzardly thrown in a basement. This is not the Holy Shroud of Turin... It would have been worn once! 66 / 67 years ago (Kamikaze), Stuck in a drawer, placed in a frame and now in a paper bag. And if we are going to make guesses we should hold it in our hands... The next best way to judge it. When would you like to get together and where? I love sharing my collection with interested people. What is the sense of Collecting stuff it you can't share it?

G'Day Wil,
I was actually talking about the Headband that started this thread.
I like the look of yours,though.It could be the real thing,too much details on it for a faker i reckon
I would love to have a look at your collection,if only i was a couple thousand miles closer
Mick

[Alan M]

You should post the head band up on WAF in the Japanese section, there are a lot of Japanese experts on there and they could give you a translation and also their opions on it.

Cheers luke.

Hi Luke , we have a member here , Tom (TMYS) , who is an amazing translater of ancient Japanese kanji , and i see he has already posted a reply on this thread . Hi Tom

[Wil Morgan]

Hi Mick, Luke & Tom, I was wondering what the Kanji below the "Kami Kaze" kanji on mine read. I treid to get on WAF. But they would not let me post at their site. Is there a waiting period?

[AIF]

No you have to be an association member to be able to post pics direct to the forum. But you can use photobucket or any external image hosting site to post pictures on there. If Its too tricky for you let me know and I can post them up for you.

Id be interested to see what it says also, make sure you keep us updated

Cheers Luke.

[Wil Morgan]

How do I send the photos to you?

[AIF]

You can email them to me If you like I will send you a PM

[Wil Morgan]

ok

[tmys]

Hi, let me chime in.

The writing is quite crude and appears to be done by a child. It is a male's name - NOBAYASHI Masao. The Kamikaze was written by an experienced calligrapher.

My wife was raised in Japan and was 10 when the war ended. She says students, depending on the school and if they worked part-time at defense-related jobs, wore headbands. However, she does not recall Kamikaze headbands specifically although she says it was possible.

Based on what I admit is spotty evidence, I postulate the following. This was a child's headband based on the writing of the name, the homemade nature of the meatball, and the headband made of a different fabric than silk. I may be wrong but do not recall headbands having the individual's name, at least not on the outside. School children wear name tags and having the name there would be natural for a schoolboy.

Wonder if anyone can shed anymore light on the subject?

Tom

[aussie mick]

Interesting and believable theory,Tom

This might help for any future Headband concerns.
These are all new copies going for about $4.50 a pop

A Hissho
(Determination to Win)
B Kamikaze
(Divine Wind)
C Ichiban
(No1!)
D Tookon
(Fighting Spirit)
E Nihon
(Japan)

[Wil Morgan]

I note that the Japanese is backward on the newly made headband. Japanese is read from right to left during and before WW2.... And here are a few photos of Pilots wearing them.