“Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster” (ゴジラ・モスラ・キングギドラ 地球最大の決戦 / Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah: The Greatest Battle on Earth), 1971 Japanese STB Tatekan Poster — Toho Champion Festival Re-release / New Print, Ultra Rare, STB Size (c. 51 × 145 cm) Q240

This is an original Japanese STB tatekan poster issued in Japan for the 1971 Toho Champion Festival re-release of Toho’s landmark kaiju classic Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster. First released in 1964 under the Japanese title 三大怪獣 地球最大の決戦 — Three Giant Monsters: The Greatest Battle on Earth — this 1971 revival was promoted with the more explicit monster-led title ゴジラ・モスラ・キングギドラ 地球最大の決戦, placing Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah directly at the center of the campaign. Produced in the dramatic STB format—two B2 sheets designed to display together as one tall vertical theatre poster—it is an especially scarce country-of-origin Godzilla piece from the Toho Champion Matsuri era.

Important note on authenticity: Champion Festival STB posters are highly vulnerable to loss because they were printed for short theatrical use, displayed in cinemas, and often discarded once the program ended. This example is 100% original Japanese theatrical paper from the 1971 re-release, not a reproduction or later decorative reprint. 

Film background
Originally released by Toho in 1964, Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster was directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya, and stands as one of the pivotal entries of the Shōwa Godzilla cycle. It introduced King Ghidorah, the golden three-headed space monster who would become one of Godzilla’s defining adversaries, and marked an important turning point in the series: Godzilla begins shifting from destructive menace toward reluctant defender of Earth. The film brings together Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, and King Ghidorah in a large-scale monster conflict, while the human story combines political intrigue, assassination plots, royal identity, and apocalyptic warning.

This poster belongs to the 1971 Toho Champion Festival re-release, a program designed for younger audiences and presented as a new theatrical event. The poster itself identifies the film as a “New Print” with the notation 「カラー作品・ニュープリント」, reflecting its revival-screening status. This Champion Festival context gives the piece particular historical importance: it captures the moment when Godzilla was being introduced to a new generation as a heroic, child-facing icon, while still drawing from one of the most celebrated monster battles of the 1960s.

Poster design
This STB is a spectacular vertical kaiju composition. The upper section is dominated by King Ghidorah, towering against a blazing orange sky, all three heads unleashing gravity beams as Rodan sweeps across the top of the image. Below Ghidorah, Godzilla rises defiantly, his atomic breath cutting across the composition in a dramatic arc. The poster’s blue vertical tagline announces the cosmic threat with emphatic Champion Festival energy: a super monster from outer space has arrived, and Earth’s giant monsters must fight back.

The lower panel heightens the sense of scale. Godzilla’s massive body fills the left side, military searchlights rake upward through smoke and debris, and Mothra’s larva coils into the foreground, anchoring the film’s alliance of Earth monsters. The central red title 「地球最大の決戦」 is rendered in huge, block-like kanji, while the right-side vertical blue panel names 「ゴジラ・モスラ・キングギドラ」 in bold yellow characters. At the bottom, the human cast portraits and credits provide a classic Toho adventure counterpoint to the monster spectacle above. The result is a powerful revival-era design: brighter, more direct, and more emphatically monster-focused than many first-release layouts.

Rarity and condition
Japanese STB tatekan posters were produced for actual cinema display and were far less likely to survive intact than smaller standard formats. Champion Festival STBs are especially difficult to obtain, as these re-release campaigns were shorter, more youth-oriented, and often printed in smaller quantities than original theatrical runs. Complete two-panel examples from this period are therefore genuinely scarce, and this 1971 New Print re-release STB is an ultra-rare piece within the Godzilla and Toho kaiju collecting field.

Condition is excellent overall for this fragile format, light handling, and minor age-related toning/spotting visible on the reverse. Colors remain strong, the monster imagery presents with superb impact, and the full two-panel format retains its dramatic theatrical presence. Please inspect the photos carefully, as they show the exact poster for sale. This is not a reproduction or reprint.

Certificate of Authenticity included.