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AKATSUKI

Date1960-1979

Object number00039486

NameModel

MediumMetal, plastic, paint.

DimensionsOverall: 35 x 15 x 175 mm, 0.02 kg

ClassificationsModels

Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Peter Collins

Terms

DescriptionA model of the Imperial Japanese Navy's destroyer AKATSUKI.HistoryIJNS AKATSUKI was the name of the lead ship of a class of four ‘‘special type'' destroyers ordered for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) in the early 1930s. Commissioned towards the end of November 1932, the AKATSUKI was built at Sasebo (Nagasaki Prefecture) and served in home and Chinese waters during the 1930s. She took part in combat operations during the Sino-Japanese war (1937) During the Pacific war (December 1941 - August 1945) the AKATSUKI supported the Japanese invasion of western Java in late February and March 1942. In June 1942 she operated in the North Pacific and took part in the capture of Kiska Island, in Aleutian waters. A few months later, she was involved in the Guadalcanal Campaign and on 25 October 1942 participated in a daring daylight strike into "Iron Bottom Sound" off Guadalcanal. She and her consorts sank the U.S. Navy fleet tug SEMINOLE and the patrol craft YP-284 and damaged the fast minesweeper ZANE. AKATSUKI was damaged by coastal artillery. Three weeks later, AKATSUKI returned to "Iron Bottom Sound" as part of a major attack and bombardment force assembled around the IJN battleships HIEI and KIRISHIMA. On 13 November 1942, they encountered a task force comprising several US Navy destroyers and cruisers. The RAN's cruiser HMAS CANBERRA also participated in this action. AKATSUKI was fatally hit by American broadsides and sank early in the action, with the loss of all nearly all hands. This engagement is generally referred to as the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, which marked the first major strategic Allied naval victory of the Pacific War, although from a tactical perspective the US Navy lost the actual engagement. However, the Imperial Japanese forces did not succeed in the objective of their attack, i.e. were unable to dislodge the allied (mainly US) forces that had gained a foothold in the Solomon Islands -especially the strategically positioned airfield which later came to be known as 'Henderson Field'. HMAS CANBERRA was also sunk during the Guadalcanal battle together with a number of USN cruisers and destroyers and a host of smaller vessels, including HMNZS MOA. For the Japanese the loss of Guadalcanal meant that for the remainder of the war they were on the defensive, whereas the Allied forces were able to use Guadalcanal as a springboard for subsequent offenses, which eventually led to final victory; albeit after a series of hard-fought, hugely costly battles in terms of men and materiel (e.g. Saipan, Tinian, Peleliu, Leyte Gulf, Iwo Jima and Okinawa) Engagements that were so costly in terms of casualties that they hastened the production of nuclear weapons and brought about the Allied decision to favour their use against an implacable enemy who apparently would not surrender, even when comprehensively beaten by conventional warfare. Waterline models give the impression of a ship floating in its natural element by "omitting the underwater part of the ship during construction from a point equivalent to where the water level would reach if thevessel were floating at her normal trim". 1:1200scale models are improved versions of the wooden identification models used by Allied forces for recognition training and battle simulation during the two World Wars. Die cast metal waterline models are ideal for collectors or for naval hobbyists, who use them for fighting naval battles in table top war gaming. Created by Fred T. Jane around 1904, the war game was popular in Germany and Britain, but languished after World War II as companies were put out of business by the war and Germans focused on the rebuilding of their country. The revival of the German economy in the 1950s saw a rebirth in the hobby market, and the inauguration of companies such as Hansa in the late 1950s and Mercator and Neptun/Navis in the 1960s, the latter still the largest producer of quality water line models. Miniature waterline models are valued by collectors for their age, rarity, quality, and for the particular vessels they represent. The aesthetic significance of these waterline models is evident in their quality craftsmanship - the models, excluding masts and posts, have been cast as a single entity, with hand painted detailing. These miniature models accurately replicate full - sized ocean - going merchant and naval vessels. The models convey charm, evidence of maritime skill and knowledge, and fine attention to detail, making them highly valuable and collectible.SignificanceDating from the 1950s to 1970s, these waterline models are historically significant for their association with a
period in which ship model production and collection was highly prolific.