J003757 (IJA) BOMBER CREW MEMBER’S BODY ARMOR PANEL. The uppermost of three steel plates that would have been inserted, slightly overlapping like fish-scales, into one of the two front panels of a bullet-proof vest. The olive drab painted plate is somewhat convex, to fit over the breast, and has what appears to be a deliberately cut section from the side which slopes to accommodate the left arm. To its concave reverse is painted, in white, the western numeral "7," above and beneath which has been painted, in red, the liberator’s annotation, "Japanese Armor Body Plate," "Burma May 1944," and "Bomber Crew Member." Its original paint, the brush strokes of which are plainly visible, has worn along its edges and has several chips to it. Unique. Of Note: A photograph of this plate, its companions, and the vest that they fit into, is reproduced on page 278 of the U.S. War Department’s "Handbook On Japanese Military Forces."

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