Japan’s Mysterious Utsuro-bune Event of 1803

In February of 1803, local fisherman working off the coast of Japan spotted a strange vessel aimlessly floating on the waves off in the distance. Intrigued by its small size & strange shape, the fisherman decided to tow it ashore. Once upon the beach, the local villagers marveled at the seemingly advanced engineering that the vessel possessed. It appeared to resemble a spinning top. It measured approximately 11 feet tall by 18 feet wide. The bottom half was made of some type of heavy metal while the upper portion was made of lacquered rose-wood with glass looking windows.

As the villagers inspected the vessel more closely, another surprise awaited them. Suddenly the hatch opened with a clamber to reveal a mysterious looking woman. Standing about 5 feet tall, she featured pale white skin and red hair with white highlighted tips. She was of unknown origin and spoke an unknown language. As the fisherman and villagers peered inside the vessel, they saw water and other supplies that led them to believe the woman had planned a long voyage. Strange markings could also be seen on the interior walls. But strangest of all, the woman held tight to a wooden box, refusing to let it go.

A local elder recalled hearing of a similar incident in a nearby town years prior. He therefore wondered if this woman was a foreign princess exiled for defying an arranged marriage and choosing true love instead. He theorized that her lover had possibly been executed and m,maybe this is why she had been banished to floating the sea. Hearing this, the villagers began to wonder if her lovers severed head was inside the box. The elder then advised the villagers to send her back to sea in the vessel. And so they did, pushing her out into the sea and leaving her to the destiny of the tossing waves.

This story is known as the Utsuro-bune legend (which mean hollow or vacant ship) and it appears in at least twelve literary sources from the late Edo period between 1603–1868. Japanese historian Yok De Bakin investigated investigated these claims in 1844 and thought the women’s description bore a striking resemblance to fashion and hair styles from Russia in the late 1700s. He based his observations on the testimony of someone called dikayu Kiyua, a Japanese castaway who lived in Russia in the late 1700s

Some have speculated that the unique hair style the woman wore was actually made of animal fur. Others have theorized that the story was a modern retelling of an older legend known as the origin of the Kona clan. This legend tells of a 7th century fisherman who found a 13 year old girl floating in a boat in the sea. The girl revealed herself to be the daughter of the Chinese emperor who was fleeing her evil stepmother. She later married a prince from Hanover province and their son became the founder of the Kona clan. Was the Utsuro-bune legend influenced by this story?

Despite the historical connections that can be made, some theorize that the answer to this story lies not in earthy traditions but in outer space. Two reasons given for this are the odd shape of the vessel and the strange symbols that were seen inside it. The illustrations we have from the 1800s that depict the craft appear to resemble a flying saucer – a shape that would not become widely known until the 20th century. There does not seem to be any type of seafaring vessel we know of from that period of history that matches the strange shape described in these accounts. Also the symbols that were found inside the craft supposedly did not match any known alphabet. 

Tanaka Kazuo, professor emeritus at Gifu University, has studied this Utsuro-bune legend for many years. In fact, he was so enamored by it that he left his main area of research to study it. He states, “Long before the American UFO stories, the craft depicted in Edo-period Japanese documents for some reason looked like a flying saucer. This was fascinating to me. Having a story like this in Japan—from 140 years before the American UFO sightings—that stimulates the imagination to this extent reminds me of how deep and fascinating Japanese culture can be.”

This mysterious documented legend continues to puzzle researchers today. Was the vessel & woman from some distant culture or was it something other worldly altogether?

Watch the video version below

SOURCES

https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-topics/g00879/

https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/utsuro-bune/
youtube.com/watch?v=Cllra9ZoKr4&list=WL&index=107