This monument is a fiberglass replica of the figurehead of the RMS Empress of Japan ship. Originally, the ship was built in 1891 in England for the Canadian shipping company, Canadian Pacific Steamships. She would carry cargo such as tea and silk, but also carried passengers and mail between the west coast of Canada and the Far East. During the first world war she was fitted as an Armed Auxiliary Cruiser and attended duty in Hong Kong. In 1916, she returned to company service and in 1922, arrived in Vancouver for the last time after her 315th crossing, thus retiring. The ship was eventually scrapped in 1928 in North Vancouver, but while she was afloat, she had a shining reputation as holding speed record for twenty-two years. The figurehead was rescued by the Vancouver Daily Province newspaper after its first restoration was put on display in 1927 in Stanley Park. The current masthead is a replica dating from 1960 since the original had begun to decay and had to be taken away, although it is now fully restored and can be viewed in the Vancouver Maritime Museum along with the ship’s bell.