For many years, it was on display in the 2nd Infantry Division Museum in Korea,[2] where it was the most valuable item in the collection, worth upwards of $2.5 million.

[4] The silver set includes the bowl, the ladle, the tray and several dozen cups, and stylistically is of the late Meiji period.

On 15 July, two days after the fall of Tianjin, a government mint full of silver bullion and coins was discovered in a burned building in the American sector.

However, when the bullion was removed from the mint, the heat from the fire had caused several of the bars to fuse together, resulting in large molten masses of silver.

[2] The regiment's officers held an informal meeting on what to do with the fused silver and decided to construct a legacy trophy in the form of a punch bowl.

After the regiment returned to the Philippines in April 1902, the remainder of the fused silver was sent to Yokohama, Japan, care of Arthur & Bond Company, a fine arts gallery and manufacturer that catered mainly to foreigners and English expatriates.

Japanese silversmiths working for the company spent eight months creating the ornate bowl, the ladle and the circular tray, based on the specific instructions forwarded by the regiment.

[8] It was repaired and the set was sent to the United States,[6] transported by a U.S. cruiser via the Suez Canal and finally presented to the regiment at Madison Barracks, New York, in April 1903.

[9] In 2003, it underwent much needed restoration work at Creative Metalworks in Maryland, which described its condition: "One hundred years after its creation, the bowl was in dire need of restoration: dented, crushed and battered, full of lead solder from poorly executed prior repairs, and missing talons and other segments of the ornate dragons.