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Hi all,

I am looking for anyone who would be able to validate or comment on the history behind an item I have in my possession. The item in question is a small milk jug. A pretty thing with what appears to be a makers mark in Japanese script on its base. Please bear with me while I give you the story behind it.

This item was given to me by my grandmother shortly before she died. She repeated the story behind it to me many time over the years and I was always fascinated by it.

A number of decades ago, there was a former lieutenant of the British Royal Navy who lived in the same block of flats as my grandmother (I live in South Africa). Everywhere he went for tea, he carried this little milk jug and insisted that his milk was served out of it. His wife fell ill (I am not sure what with, perhaps cancer) and my grandmother was a great support to him and his dying wife during this period. On her death, he left South Africa and returned to the UK. Before leaving, as a final thank you, he passed on the jug to my grandmother.

The lieutenant claimed to have served aboard the first Allied aid ship that rendered aid to the people of Hiroshima after the end of hostilities. As the story goes, having little left to give thanks, the surviving city fathers gave each of the officers on board the ship a surviving piece of china as a sign of their appreciation (The Captain got a teapot, the Ensigns got saucers etc.). If by any chance you would be interested in helping me, please do send me an email. I can then send you photos of the item.

I have no reason to no believe this story, but at the same time, it is rather fantastical and who knows what has been exaggerated over the years. Your feedback would be greatly appreciated, as this has been a mystery which has bugged me for many years.

It appears that they only allow max 100kb images, so I had to reduce the quality of the images, apologies for that.

Hi Nick,

The mark is not a makers mark, it reads a little stylized: "KUTANI" - in Japanese 九谷 - which is the region where it was made. A lot of Kutani ware was made in the 1930's, mostly for export to the West.
The mark seems to me a pre WW2 mark.

I own a cup and saucer with more or less the same oak leaf pattern with a stamped Kutani mark, probably circa 1970, see picture.

Regards,
Martin.

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