Lost Treasures of Japan - Yamashita Gold and Awa Maru

Do you know the many lost treasures that Japan has? In this article, we'll talk about the lost treasures of Yamashita and the Castaway Awa Maru, Tokugawa, as well as other treasures buried all over Japan.

Japan is full of lost treasures from clans and daimyo from the long wars that took place between the 12th and 19th centuries. In 1963 one of these treasures was found worth over 10 billion yen. So this article is no joke!

Many other treasures are found over the years valued at between 10,000 to 100,000 yen. These places are called Tadakinzan [埋蔵金伝説] which literally means legend of buried treasure.

In World War II alone, there were 50 reports of treasure discovered. It was often ancient gold, copper and other artifacts discovered in excavations and public works. Now let's start talking about Japan's greatest lost treasures!

General Yamashita's Lost Treasure

It's not One Piece, but a Japanese man has hidden a treasure, a priceless fortune. In this article, we are going to talk about General Yamashita who hid his treasure somewhere in Asia and to this day it has not been found.

Around World War II, Japan amassed diverse treasures and riches from more than 12 countries in Asia. For years, rumors have existed involving a treasure estimated at billions of dollars made up of gold bars and gemstones.

Japan's Lost Treasures - Yamashita Gold and Awa Maru

Legend says that General Yamashita Tomoyuki hid part of the treasure in the mountains of Luzon in the Philippines and imploded a tunnel with tons of dynamite to hide the gold bars and precious stones.

Despite General Yamashita being captured by the Americans and surrendering on September 2, 1945, nothing was revealed about the treasure. Members of his army were tortured to find out the location of the treasure, but nothing was discovered.

Anthropological experts say it is nothing more than an urban legend, even though the Japanese were in the Philippines around 1941. It is said that many knew about the location of the treasure but were killed during the war.

Japan's Lost Treasures - Yamashita Gold and Awa Maru

Many treasure hunters and pirates searched for Yamashita's Gold for several years, but many gave up and only caused archaeological damage. This legend even generates conspiracy theories involving the government of the Philippines having hidden all the treasure.

Rumors circulate that the treasure was found in 2017 along with a video, but most likely the video is fake and the treasure is still missing. Philippine folklore is filled with legends of hidden treasures, which strengthens the legend.

Awa Maru - The Sunken Treasure of Japan

Yamashita's lost treasure isn't Japan's only treasure. The Awa Maru was a Japanese ocean-going ship that sank with over 5 billion in wealth during World War II.

The construction of the Awa Maru took place between 1941 and 1943 in Nagasaki. It was initially designed for passenger transport, but at the beginning of World War II, it was taken over by the Japanese Navy.

Japan's Lost Treasures - Yamashita Gold and Awa Maru

His goal was to serve for agents and the military, but rumor has it that he carried a large fortune. On March 28, 1945, the ship reportedly left Singapore, but was intercepted on April 1 by torpedoes.

Of the 2004 passengers, only one survived. If there was indeed any treasure, it still remains lost at the bottom of the sea or has it been found by some explorer? We will never know...

Buried Treasure TOYOTOMI HIDEYOSHI and from Tokugawa

There is another legend that says that treasure was buried in the Tokugawa house for over 250 years in the Edo Period. These were war funds used by the Shogunate for emergencies after Chief Minister Bakumatsu was assassinated in the Sakuradamon incident.

It is believed that there are over 400 Koban coins that have been hidden and converted could be worth a few billion yen. In the 1990s a TV show used an excavator to dig a hole in the ground at the site, which was derided but also gave a big boom to the legend of buried treasure in Japan.

Japan's Lost Treasures - Yamashita Gold and Awa Maru

There is another legend that claims that Toyotomi Hideyoshi would have a treasure estimated at over 200 trillion yen buried in some tunnel in southwestern Japan in Hyogo. the treasure is called Tadakinzan and it is a silver mine.

One part of this treasure is funds from the disputed Tenshou Ooban which claims to have 112 tons of gold, 30,000 kan and 410 million ryo, the name of the coins of the time. Will anyone find this treasure or is it just urban legends?

The article is still halfway through, but we recommend also reading:

Other Lost Japanese Treasures

Honjō Masamune – A famous and legendary samurai sword created by master Goro Masamune between 1288 and 1328. This sword was passed down several centuries from Shogun to Shogun and is considered a priceless artifact.

Japan's Lost Treasures - Yamashita Gold and Awa Maru

Kusanagi It is another sword and one of the three lost treasures of Japan that are priceless and of great importance in the history of Japan. You can read our article that talks in detail about these lost treasures by clicking here.

Takeda Shingen was responsible for making Japan's first large-scale gold mine. He once boasted of having the greatest fortune and created the country's first gold coins called Koushoukin. It is unknown where he hid his fortune.

Minamoto no Yoshitsune was dethroned by his older brother and fled to Hokkaido. He is said to have a large amount of gold dust hidden somewhere. It is not known if this legend is true, like all legends lol.

Did you know about these lost treasures of Japan? Do you know other legends? If you liked the article share it and leave your comments. Thank you and see you next time!

Read more articles from our website

Thanks for reading! But we would be happy if you take a look at other articles below:

Read our most popular articles:

Do you know this anime?