This is a set of 3 antique Japanese military sake cups, decorated each with a star and the words "Dispatch Commemoration" on the front. On the back are the words "Sakhalin Island NIkolayevsk Expeditionary Army Independent Engineer Company Engineer 1st class." In the center of the cup's back are the words "Taisho 10th Year (1921)" and the soldier's full name Watabe Heisaburo. 

This set of cups is in reference to the Nikolayevsk Incident, which was when the town Nikolayevsk-on-Amur was taken by a Bolshevik-allied army under Tryapitsyn. After some back and forth, he decided to raze the town to the ground and executed most of the population, including the sizable Japanese community living there. The Japanese government sent a relief force there but did not make it in time. This eventually led the Japanese government to use it as an excuse to take the northern half of the Sakhalin Island. 

This is the first time I've actually encountered any cups relating to this event in person. I've only seen photos of maybe two previously. Truly a rare cup for an event that involved a relatively small number of soldiers.

Size: 3.25", 3.75", and 4.25" across

Condition: Mint