Very Rare Antique Japanese Military WW2 1943 Fighter Plane Army Lacquer Tray Pour réduction

Description

Very Rare Antique Japanese Military WW2 1943 Fighter Plane Army Lacquer Tray

This is an antique Japanese military lacquer tray, decorated with a WW2 era fighter plane – there really aren’t enough details, at least to my eye, to ID the exact model, but given the wheels are retracted I think it’s safe to say it’s one of the later Nakajimas for the army. I don’t think it’s the Zero since the antenna is in the wrong place. It would seem to be most likely the Ki-43 or 44. The words on the back of the tray are « Niu area local office establishment 1st year anniversary ». This refers to a local government reorganization that took place in July 1942, so this would date this tray to July 1943 – a very rare mid to late WW2 item. The Niu area office is located in the current day city of Fukui. I’m not sure what the significance of the plane is – perhaps a squadron was stationed nearby at the time, or perhaps some parts of the plane were made there. The mark on the bottom left of the back is « Echizen lacquer » – Echizen is the old name for the area Fukui is in.

Condition: Excellent – there are small damages on the back (please see pictures) but no cracking.

Size: 9.5″ x9.5″