A 31-star flag was displayed at Japan’s surrender ceremony aboard USS Missouri.
The flag had been flown from Commodore Matthew Perry’s flagship during his 1853–1854 expedition to Japan. Perry’s expedition entered Tokyo Bay nearly ninety years before the surrender ceremony, making the flag a deliberate historical reference to an earlier turning point in U.S.–Japan relations.
The 31-star design dates from the period when California became a U.S. state in 1850 and remained in official use until 1858. The fragile flag was displayed with protective backing, and photographs show its reverse side, which can make the stars appear to be arranged incorrectly.
A popular story claims that the other flag aboard Missouri had flown over the White House during the attack on Pearl Harbor. The ship’s captain disputed that story, explaining that it was an ordinary U.S. Navy stock flag. The Perry flag, however, is firmly associated with the surrender ceremony.