Tokei Maru, the ship that saved lives in the hell of Smyrna

In September 1922, in the hell of Smyrna and Asia Minor, history has recorded an incident in which the captain of a Japanese merchant ship, the Tokei Maru, rescued hundreds of Greek and Armenian refugees who had fled their homes.

Σε ένα ιαπωνικό πλοίο οφείλεται η σωτηρία εκατοντάδων ανθρώπων Source: Mary Evans Picture Library

In September 1922, the captain of the Japanese merchant ship Tokei Maru, saved the lives of 825 people, women, children and men, Greeks and Armenians, from the wrath of the Turks at the time of Smyrna.

Το λιμάνι της Σμύρνης στις φλόγες Source: AAP Image/Mary Evans Picture Library

Nearly one hundred years later, the captain's name and the fate of the ship are unknown, with this heroic act being the subject of years of research.