This is a painting of Japanese soldiers fighting during the battle for Singapore. It was a prized possession as it would give them the base to spread further towards the south where an abundant supply of raw materials could be found. On the other hand, the defenders who included British and other Allied troops from Australia and India did not fight with as much intensity. They were after all fighting on a land they had no close affinity to. Their homelands were far and this was not the main theatre where war was taking place. Mamy Allied troops even complained how they were sent to fight an inferior enemy - the Japanese. This over-confidence and belief of racial supremacy left the Allied troops complacent and when they came into contact with the Japanese their myths were shattered. It was too late however because the Japanese were gaining the foothold in Singapore and conquered in within 100 hours.
