Greetings. My ex-navy pilot neighbor has a pistol given to him by his Dad. His dad, a US admiral, was on the deck of the Missouri at the time of the surrender. The pistol was given to the US admiral by a Japanese admiral as part of the surrender ceremony.It's bonifide Luger with holster shoulder stock and matching numbers on everything except 1 of 2 magazines. There's even a handwritten Japanese inscription on the leather holster. The neighbor wanted to know if it had anything other then sentimental value and I assured him that it was also a valuable item. I'm not looking to buy it but rather to tell him what it's worth. How do I get an idea of value for something like this? Is there a Luger Collectors group or similar?

Contact Ralph Shattuck at www.WorldofLugars.com
I think thats his web address. If not, it's been posted on the "experts" forum over at www.GunBroker.com several times.
Good luck.

Hmmmmm---- I think the only Japanese weapons on board the Missouri that day was the ceremonial sword handed over to McAuthur, but I could be very wrong.

A Luger? Are you sure this isn't a Nambu, often referred to by WWII Vets as the "Jap Luger"?

Many old Vets from the Eurpoean theatre also refer to the German P-38 as a luger which is also incorrect.

As to the value of your friends pistol, unless there is some documentation (Provenance) proving who gave what to who when, it probably isn't worth much more than any other Luger or Nambu.
Provenance could be a letter from and signed by the Admiral, a Photograph, a news clipping, etc.
The key to adding serious collector or historical value to anything is the PROOF, because without it, your just buying an undocumented story.(Ever been to a gunshow?)

Interesting - I worked with a guy for years that was on the USS Columbus (CA-74) which was tied up alongside the USS Missouri (BB-63) when the surrender was signed and he told me they gave each of the sailors and marines present a rifle if they wanted it - had a huge warehouse full, so he said. Then he floored me with "Would you like to have mine?" He brought me the rifle, a 7.7 Arisaki complete with bayonet but was never able to find the documentation the Navy gave him stating it was legal and okay for him to bring it home. Can you imagine that happening today? Rifle never fired, bayonet never sharpened. The "mum" is ground - was that really a part of the surrender agreement?
Best regards,

[ 07-21-2003, 21:45: Message edited by: 'Trapper' ]