Digital museum showcasing the collection of worldwide legends over the years! 千古不朽博物館展示多年來收藏的世界傳奇故事!
Commemorative Silver medal,
Tokyo Welcoming Ceremony of the Returning Army
(Meiji 37-38)
明治三十七八年戰役東京凱旋軍歡迎會紀念銀章
Item number: M72
Year: AD 1905
Material: Silver
Size: case 61.26 x 48.73 x 18.24 / medal 28.97 x 22.79 mm
Weight: case 10.19 / medal 5.46 g
Provenance: Quan Jian Zhai 2022
The Russo-Japanese War constituted the first large-scale international conflict of the 20th century, holding a paramount significance in both international political history and military history. This war precipitated a profound transformation in the power dynamics of the Far East region at the beginning of the 20th century. Japan, having emerged victorious, witnessed an unprecedented surge in national confidence and militarism. Apart from its significant impact on the international politics of the early 20th century in the Far East, the Russo-Japanese War also sowed the seeds for the later Pacific War between Japan and the United States during the Second World War.
The tension between Japan and Russia could traced back to the first Sino-Japanese war. Following the First Sino-Japanese War of AD 1894-1895, Russia, along with Germany and France, compelled Japan to relinquish the Liaodong Peninsula. Subsequently, Russia incorporated the peninsula into its sphere of influence, laying the groundwork for future conflicts between Japan and Russia. During the Boxer Rebellion(AD 1899-1901), Russia, citing the protection of the Trans-Siberian Railway, occupied the entire territory of the Three Eastern Provinces (Manchuria). Despite numerous negotiations, China and Russia signed the “Agreement between Russia and China with Regard to Manchuria” on April 8, AD 1902, stipulating the return of the provinces to China, with Russian troops to withdraw in three phases over 18 months. However, when Russia failed to adhere to the withdrawal schedule in April AD 1903, and instead increased its military presence, it sparked anti-Russian sentiments in China and further intensified the conflicts between Japan and Russia in Northeast China. Combined with the escalating competition between Japan and Russia in Korea, the Russo-Japanese War erupted in AD 1904.
The obverse side of this commemorative medal is inscribed with Qin script “凱旋紀念” (Commemoration For Victory), while the reverse side features the same script with the engraving “東京凱旋軍歡迎會” (Tokyo Welcoming Ceremony for the Returning Army), surrounded at the top by Qin script characters for “明治三十七八年戰役” (The Thirty-Seventh and Thirty-Eighth Years of the Meiji Era War). The medal is stored within a wooden box, the front of which bears the inscription “卅七ハ年戦役に依り東京歓迎會り” (In Commemoration of the Thirty-Seventh-Year War, Tokyo Welcoming Event). The lower-left portion of the box includes the name of the owner, “利十郎” (Toshirou).