You might have heard of the mythical gold hoard of Yamashita, named after General Tomoyuki Yamashita, the “Tiger of Malaya” who led the Japanese forces in the Southeast Asian campaign of World War II. Yamashita’s Treasure or Yamashita’s Gold, as it has come to be known, refers to the loot amassed by the Japanese during their campaign from banks, places of worship and prisoners – more notably, the hoard has never been found and is said to be hidden somewhere in Southeast Asia. The most common final resting place for this hoard is in the Philippines, but Peter Chan recounts a story from his grandfather of spotting Japanese gold in a vault right here in Singapore!

Peter’s grandfather remembers his time working in a Japanese bank during the war years, and his weekly duties of checking the contents of the vault:

At this Japanese bank it was a practice to physically check everything in the vault on a weekly basis. My grandfather did this task together with one other Chinese employee. Thus every Friday night, he would come home very late. Everything inside the vault was taken out, counted, recorded and put back again. But after August 15, 1945 something was very unusual.

The process was to be speedily accelerated. My three teenaged uncles were roped in to assist my grandfather. Individually they found it hard to lift a bar of gold. My two uncles (now in their late 70s) confirmed what my grandfather had told me. They remarked they had never seen so many Kum Chuen stacked on planks up to the ceiling.

“The British convoy reached Singapore on 5th September, 1945, and troops were landing and entering the town by noon. Shortly after 2pm, the Japanese flag at Town Hall was replaced by the Union Jack. Due to no stamps available after the war, the Post Office began operation on the 17th and letters were accepted and sent free of charge for two days” – written notes from my grandfather.

Where was this Japanese bank and vault? The answers are on Good Morning Yesterday. But is this the famed Yamashita’s Gold? The fact is, treasure hunters have tried to determine the whereabouts of this treasure for the last 50 years, to no avail. A former Philippine president had claimed that at was the source of his wealth, but in all likelihood, it does not exist.