I believe this is a standard Japanese Army Enlisted man's canteen. I picked this up years ago. Can any of you guys translate the writing on the back or the strap? Do the numbers signify a unit?

 

Any help with the characters, comments or observations will be appreciated.

 

Thanks all

 

 

the other side.

The markings on the strap.

Unfortunately these characters can represent several surnames.

 

新村 = Shimura, Mimura, Shinmura, Aramura, Niimura

 

I would guess that the numbers represent units (e.g. 3/5 = 3rd Company, 5th Battalion)

Thanks Eric.

Old Marine,

Take the bottle out of the harness and look on the exterior bottom of the bottle....there should be a stamp into the metal or a paint stamp that will give you a date of the bottle...i.e. "Sho 15" similar to the stamps on the helmet liners. It is a used piece so it may not be in good enough condition to read. It likely is too faded but there was also an ink stamp on the shoulder strap with a date.

Tiger 41

Thank you for the info Tiger. Do you have any idea as to the translation of white painted characters?

Sorry, but my Japanese is limited..I know what the individual kanji says but when used together is different. Looks like a name and a individual number on the bottle. Canteen harnesses and bottles were exchanged a lot when they got damaged or were taken from dead or wounded men. I've seen canteens with 3 or 4 different names on them. Still looks to be a good early example that is nicely marked.

Surname on the canteen is the same as on the strap............

Thank Eric.

Here is the mark on the bottom of the canteen.

 

 

 

Looks to be "Showa 16th year" = 1941

Looks to be "Showa 16th year" = 1941

 

Thank you.

Regarding the "3/5"; smaller units were often expressed in terms of fractions by Japanese soldiers, almost certainly a squad/company relationship. Japanese regiments generally had 3 battalions.

 

These fractions originate with Japanese Army map notations. Attached is a fragment borrowed from a handmade map of the Burma/China border, by a Japanese soldier. Still not sure of the unit represented though.

Looks to be a good early example. IMO