Original Item: Only One Available. This is a lovely, worn example of a tropical enlisted man’s forage cap. This is the first type of this example we have encountered. It appears to be a private purchase and does not have a string closure back or vent holes on the sides.

The front 5 point star badge is a gorgeous gold bullion embroidered, felt back example in wonderful condition. The lining is a German style polished blue cotton in fantastic condition. The remains of the sweatband appears to be a late war pressed paper / faux leather type, but due to the material used it is quite worn with a good majority of it missing entirely. There are no marking that can be found.

All in all very interesting example of a WW2 Japanese cap, quality items of this kind are very rarely encountered.

Forage Caps
Forage cap is the designation given to various types of military undress, fatigue or working headwear. These varied widely in form, according to country or period. The coloured peaked cap worn by the modern British Army for parade and other dress occasions is still officially designated as a forage cap.

History
In the 18th century, forage caps were small cloth caps worn by British cavalrymen when undertaking work duties such as foraging for food for their horses. The term was later applied to undress caps worn by men of all branches and regiments as a substitute for the full dress headdress.