# "Made In Occupied japan"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 17, 2008, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997 "2008-02-17T18:13:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2008, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/1 "2008-02-17T18:13:46Z")
My wife came home with a little ceramic vase…which she purchasd at a yard sale. on the bottom was printed “Made In Occupied Japan”-presumably this means it was made in the period 1945-1953. Was it required that the japanese mark their exports to the USA in such a fashion? Does this imply any added value? ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2008, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/2 "2008-02-17T18:35:58Z")
[Made In Occupied Japan](http://www.the4cs.com/~cathy/MIOJ/) > [@](#): > > Following the end of World War II in 1945 and until 1952, items imported from Japan to the United States had to be marked in a fashion indicating they came from Occupied Japan. Although four different marks were used on cups and saucers during this time (“Japan,” “Made in Japan,” “Occupied Japan,” and “Made in Occupied Japan”), only the last two marks guarantee the pieces were made in the Occupied Japan timeframe. For serious Occupied Japan collectors, it is items with these two marks for which they search. ---
**Author:** ![KlondikeGeoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@KlondikeGeoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KlondikeGeoff)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2008, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/3 "2008-02-17T19:59:50Z")
[QUOTE=ralph124c] My wife came home with a little ceramic vase..which she purchasd at a yard sale. on the bottom was printed “Made In Occupied Japan”-presumably this means it was made in the period 1945-1953. Was it required that the japanese mark their exports to the USA in such a fashion? Does this imply any added value? [/QUOTE] I was stationed in Japan during the Occupation, from 1949 to 1951. During this time, I married a Japanese girl from Kyoto. So, on our honeymoon, I assume she was “made in Occupied Japan.” 😃 (Made well, as we celebrated our 56th Anniversary last December.) ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/4 "2008-02-18T03:42:13Z")
[QUOTE=KlondikeGeoff] I was stationed in Japan during the Occupation, from 1949 to 1951. During this time, I married a Japanese girl from Kyoto. So, on our honeymoon, I assume she was “made in Occupied Japan.” 😃 (Made well, as we celebrated our 56th Anniversary last December.) [/QUOTE] I just went to the opera last night–Madama Butterfly. That ended, as many know, sadly. Congratulations on your marriage–much longer, and I hope happier! (56 years–I’m in awe!) ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/5 "2008-02-18T04:22:38Z")
Added value? Definitely, as collectibles. My mom collects Occupied Japan stuff, and I’ve picked up a few pieces over time. Search eBay for an idea of the seriousness of some collectors. ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/6 "2008-02-18T06:58:27Z")
Did other occupied areas have similar labels? “Made in Occupied Germany,” for example? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/7 "2008-02-18T07:35:21Z")
[QUOTE=Speaker for the Dead] Did other occupied areas have similar labels? “Made in Occupied Germany,” for example? [/QUOTE] I expect it’d say “Made in West Germany”. ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/8 "2008-02-18T08:07:06Z")
[QUOTE=Bryan Ekers] I expect it’d say “Made in West Germany”. [/QUOTE] West Germany (Federal Republic of Germany) was created in 1949. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/9 "2008-02-18T08:47:50Z")
Bit of irony in this. When I was a kid, in the years after WWII, ‘Made in Japan’ meant cheap. Most of the stuff was trinkets, toys and incidental small items. The items were very inexpensive, pressed sheet metal, wood, paper and not very durable. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2008, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/made-in-occupied-japan/437997/10 "2008-02-18T10:09:38Z")
I can’t say how much added value the “Occupied Japan” would give it, but I can say with certainty it would be more valuable in America than in Japan. A friend of mine specialized in buying up what qualified here as “old crap” and selling them online in America as antiques (no dishonesty involved, 19th century just isn’t considered “old” here). He had an amazing collection of wartime items, including training uniforms, air-raid sirens, and hundreds of official documents that were tossed aside as worthless here but collectors in America were lining up to buy.