During the Battle of Iwo Jima, US Marines captured Mount Suribachi (seen in the below/previous picture) and raised a small American flag. Their officers ordered it replaced with a larger one, and photographer Joe Rosenthal took his famous picture, Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima. The photograph has become an iconic image and is depicted as a large statue at the Marine Corps War Memorial in Northern Virginia, just outside Washington, DC.
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Tim went to Iwo Jima with the Sumo Kyokai (association) and the Japanese military to commemorate the battle and to purify the spirits, when we were living in Tokyo. In attendance at the event were a number of sumo wrestlers, of whom Hawaii-born grand champion Akebono and his rival, Takanohana, are seen in this picture.
For pictures from our 2003 trip to Iwo Jima with the US military go to https://pbase.com/helenpb/a_day_on_iwo_jima
Iwo Jima harbor, posted earlier:
