U.S.-Japan Treaty

This United States–Japan Treaty stamp commemorates the centennial of the United States–Japan Treaty of Amity and Commerce. The treaty expanded upon the agreement signed at the Convention of Kanagawa, which had been mediated by Commodore Matthew Perry in 1854. The treaty helped establish commercial relations with Japan and open trading ports. The treaty was ratified during the first visit Japanese Embassy to the United States in 1860. The stamp features an image of the Washington Monument and cherry blossoms. The blossoms were given to the city by Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo City in 1912 to symbolize and celebrate the relation between the United States and Japan.