Asama Maru was a 16,500-ton NYK liner carrying about 800 passengers, and NYK occupied a place in Japanese prestige comparable to Cunard or White Star in Britain. Stopping her near Japan carried symbolic weight beyond the detention of individual Germans, much as stopping Queen Mary or Queen Elizabeth near Britain would have done. The line's postcards presented the image Japan wanted the public to see: a strong, monumental liner framed by colour and rising-sun associations. A tug gave viewers a familiar scale reference. Asama Maru's role as a national showpiece amplified the loss of face caused by the boarding.
Chapter · 20:47-23:56
Asama Maru as Japan's prestige liner
NYK's prestige liner and its carefully composed postcards projected Japanese commercial confidence before the boarding.