Kamikaze Pilot's Watch

Jewelry

-

Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum

Name/Title

Kamikaze Pilot's Watch

Description

Japanese Seikosha Tensoku watch has separated into two pieces: the body and the backing. The body of the watch is blackened from fire and missing the crystal, the hands, and the crown. The body is bent from the impact that separated the backing, leaving the inner workings of the watch exposed. Several of the cogs are missing. The inner numbers are faded, though there is still some visual difference in the numbers that were painted with green radium paint (12, 3, 6, and 9). The outer ring of numbers and tick marks that bordered the bezel have worn away completely. The manufacture, Seikosha, is engraved in the inner workings. The backing is also bent from the impact that separated it from the watch body. There is a line of kanji down the middle of the outer portion of the backing, while the inner portion has Seikosha maker's mark and serial number at the bottom. There is a small anchor stamped into the upper portion of the inner backing.

Use

Oversized watch was used by Japanese Imperial pilots to help with navigation. Rather than wearing the watch on the wrist, the pilot often strapped it to their thigh alongside the kneeboard or hung it from a cord around the neck.

Context

The watch was found in the wreckage of a kamikaze plane that made a dive to starboard and penetrated the hull of the destroyer USS Haggard near the waterline on August 29, 1945. The bomb aboard the plane exploded in the engine room. The Haggard would later be decommissioned due to the extensive damage.

Acquisition

Accession

2023.49

Source or Donor

Edward Francis Jordan

Acquisition Method

Donation

Made/Created

Artist Information

Artist

Seikosha

Role

Designer

Date made

circa 1943

Mark, Engraving or Stamp

Type

Makers Mark

Location

Inside watch body

Transcription

SEIKOSHA

Language

Japanese

Material/Technique

Etched

Type

Makers Mark

Location

Inside of backing

Transcription

SKA

Language

Japanese

Type

Inscription

Location

Outside of packing

Language

Japanese

Material/Technique

Etched

Notes

Currently working on deciphering kanji.

Update Date

October 1, 2024