The Folklore of UFO

Several Japanese books of folklore such as the Utsuro-Bune tell the story of a UFO-like craft landing with strange writing and a beautiful girl carrying a mysterious box speaking an unknown language. Hitachi state folklore may be described perhaps as one of the earliest UFO stories as posted by Epsi. A mysterious 200-year-old hand drawn Japanese accounts of a strange woman from a metal bowl/disk shaped craft that flew out of the sea during the Edo period of Japan. 

The Iwase Bunko Depository library has in its ownership a record known as the Hyouryuukishuu translated to the ‘Tales of Castaways’. The document was printed during the late Edo period which modern fans of the paranormal understand this vessel to be the ‘Edo-period UFO’. The evidence recorded tells the tales of Japanese mariners who find themselves in unfamiliar nations after becoming lost in the ocean, as well as castaway visitors washed on the seashores of Japan. 

To the Japanese public, who during this period had existed living in an extended time of national seclusion, these unusual stories must have appeared extremely sensational. Together with these tales is the report of a damaged ship with an extremely mystifying form. According to the record, this large craft washed up on shore at Harashagahama. The specifications of the craft were three meters tall by five meters in width, had been built from red sandalwood and metal and was equipped with openings of glass or crystal. The mystifying characters of an unfamiliar writing system were discovered etched inside the craft. 

Aboard the wandering vessel was a delicately decorated young lady with pale face and red eyebrows and locks. She was assessed to be between eighteen to twenty years of age. Considering that she uttered an unfamiliar language, those that chanced upon her were incapable of determining from where she came. In her arms, she grasped a basic timber case that looked to be of great importance to her, as she would permit nobody to approach it. 

The Iwase Bunko Library has in its possession a document entitled Hyouryuukishuu ("Tales of Castaways"), which was printed during the late Edo period (1603-1868). The document recounts the stories of Japanese sailors who find themselves in foreign lands after becoming lost at sea, as well as castaway foreigners washed ashore on the beaches of Japan. 

To the Japanese people, who at the time had been living a prolonged period of national isolation, these exotic tales must have seemed very fantastic. Among these stories is the account of a wrecked ship with a very mysterious appearance. According to the document, this vessel washed ashore at Harashagahama in Hitachi-no-kuni (present-day Ibaraki prefecture). The body of the ship, described as 3.3 meters tall and 5.4 meters wide, had been built from red sandalwood and iron and was fitted with windows of glass or crystal. The mysterious characters of an unknown alphabet were found inscribed inside the vessel. 

Aboard the drifting vessel was a finely dressed young woman with a pale face and red eyebrows and hair. She was estimated to be between 18 and 20 years old. Because she spoke an unfamiliar tongue, those that encountered her were unable to determine from whence she came. In her arms she clutched a plain wooden box that appeared to be of great value to her, as she would allow nobody to approach it. 

The document shows a portion of the text found inside the ship. Other Edo-period documents describe variations of this mysterious encounter. Toen Shousetsu (1825), a book by Kyokutei Bakin (who is most famous for his 106-volume samurai epic Nansou Satomi Hakkenden) tells the story of the same encounter, referring to the strange vessel as the utsuro-fune ("hollow ship"). Another variation of this tale appears in Ume no Chiri (1844), penned by a relatively unknown author named Nagahashi Matajirou. A thorough analysis of these two variations of the story can be found in a translated article by Kazuo Tanaka titled "Did a Close Encounter of the Third Kind Occur on a Japanese Beach in 1803?" Contemporary fans of the paranormal know this ship as the Edo-period UFO.