The Type I rifle was produced by Italy

Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)

The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...

 for the Japanese Empire prior to World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. After the invasion of China, all Arisaka production was required for use of the Imperial Army, so under the terms of the Anti-Comintern Pact

Anti-Comintern Pact

The Anti-Comintern Pact was an Anti-Communist pact concluded between Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan on November 25, 1936 and was directed against the Communist International ....

, the Imperial Navy contracted with Italy for this weapon in 1937. The Type I is based on the Type 38 rifle

Type 38 rifle

The is a bolt-action rifle. For a time it was the standard rifle of the Japanese infantry. It was known also as the Type 38 Year Meiji Carbine in Japan. An earlier, similar weapon was the Type 30 Year Meiji Rifle, which was also used alongside it. Both of these weapons were also known as the...

 and utilizes a Carcano

Carcano

Carcano is the frequently used name for a series of Italian bolt-action military rifles and carbines. Introduced in 1891, this rifle was chambered for the rimless 6.5x52mm Mannlicher-Carcano Cartuccia Modello 1895 cartridge. It was developed by the chief technician Salvatore Carcano at the Turin...

 action, but retains the Arisaka

Arisaka

Arisaka is a family of Japanese military bolt action rifles, in production from approximately 1898, when it replaced the Murata rifle, until the end of World War II in 1945...

/Mauser

Mauser

Mauser was a German arms manufacturer of a line of bolt-action rifles and pistols from the 1870s to 1995. Mauser designs were built for the German armed forces...

 type 5-round box magazine. The Type I was utilized primarily by Japanese Imperial Naval Forces. It is chambered for the 6.5 x 50 mm

6.5 x 50 mm

The 6.5×50mm Semi-Rimmed Japanese cartridge was adopted by the Imperial Japanese Army in 1897, along with the Type 30 Arisaka infantry rifle and carbine. The new rifle and cartridge replaced the 8×52mm Murata round used in the Type 22 Murata Rifle. In 1902 the Imperial Japanese Navy chambered its...

 cartridge. Approximately 120,000 Type I rifles were produced by Italian arsenals for Japan between 1937 through 1939.

On the collector market in the United States, the Type I rifle is uncommon but not particularly popular among collectors. Since the heritage of the Type I rifle is both Japanese and Italian, it tends to be shunned by collectors of Japanese focus. The Type I also lacks the Japanese Imperial Chrysanthemum

Imperial Seal of Japan

The Imperial Seal of Japan is a mon or crest used by members of the Japanese Imperial family. Under the Meiji Constitution, no one was permitted to use the Imperial Seal except the Emperor of Japan, who used a 16 petal chrysanthemum with sixteen tips of another row of petals showing behind the...

 markings, or other markings that typically interest collectors of Japanese militaria. Many Type I rifles brought back to the United States as War Trophies were reportedly captured at Kwajalein Atoll, the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

, or from Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

at the conclusion of hostilities.