World of Stamps

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World of Stamps

• A small stamp tells us a big world! Through these
  beautiful stamps with unique design, we can learn
  more on and behind them. Society and economy,
  culture and development, history and future, life
  and love......You will find endless
  enlightenment. Let stamps tell you lots of
  stories!

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Lily (Special stamps)

• Their large, gorgeous flowers are often
  funnelform or campanulate in shape, usually
  white, sometimes red, purple, pink, yellow or
  greenish in colour. Lily flowers have been famous
  and precious, but popular since ancient times for
  their graceful shape and elegant style. It has
  been chosen to be the national flower in many
  countries.

• The lily, Lilium belonging to Liliaceae,
  perennial bulbiferous herbs distributed in
  temperate areas of the northern hemisphere. Among
  115 species of the genus found in the world , 55
  are endemic to China. Its underground bulb forms
  by many fleshy scaled imbricated closely, hence
  lily is called "Baihe" in Chinese (which means a
  hundred scales packed together). It is regarded
  as a symbol of unity and friendship. During
  greeting seasons, people present lily flowers to
  each other as gifts, expressing their wish of
  "happiness and harmony in a family for a hundred
  years".

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Tian'anmen Gate--- Special-use Stamp

• The Tian'anmen Gate, situated in the center of
  Beijing, was built in 1417 during the Ming
  Dynasty. It was the front gate of the Ming and
  Wing imperial palace, where emperors used to
  issue edicts. In the past century, the Tian'anmen
  Gate has witnessed many significant events. On 1
  October 1949, at the Tian'anmen Gate, Chairman
  Mao Zedong proclaimed the founding of the
  People's Republic of China. Since then, the
  Tian'anmen Gate has become a symbol of the New
  China, and a place all the Chinese people yearn
  to see.

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Commemoration of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway
Construction---Commemorative Stamps The building
of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway started on 29th June
2001. The 1142 kilometre-long railway extends
between Golmud in Qinghai Province and Lhasa in
Tibet Autonomous Region.
Its sections over 4,400m above sea level total
960km, and the highest section, which crosses the
Tanggula Mountain, is at 5,072m above sea level.
The railway passes 550km of ever-frozen land. The
construction of the railway, the highest and
longest one on plateau in the world , is planned
to be finished in six years. The Qinghai-Tibet
Railway is a representative project in China's
implementation of its strategic decision to
develop China's west at the beginning of the 21st
century.The significant project is a magnificent
task in the world history of railway construction
and has drawn the attention of the world .
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China 2003 The 16th Asia International Stamp
Exhibition --- Commemorative Stamp

• China 2003 the 16th Asia International Stamp
  Exhibition is held in Mianyang, a beautiful city
  in Sichuan Province, from November 20 to 24,
  2003, in commemoration of the 125th anniversary
  of the issuance of the Large Dragon stamps of
  China. It is a large-scale philatelic event held
  in China following the successful '96 Asia
  International Stamp Exhibition and '99 World
  Philatelic Exhibition. This exhibition, under the
  auspices of the Federation of Inter Asian
  Philately, has participants from more than 20
  countries and regions of Asia and Oceania, and
  over 1,200 frames of contesting and
  non-contesting exhibits. The exhibition will
  strengthen the friendly cooperation and exchange
  among philatelists from different countries, and
  will play a positive role in promoting the
  overall development of China's post service and
  philately.

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Leshan Giant Buddha --- Special stamp

• Leshan Giant Buddha, the largest carved stone
  Buddha of the world, is situated in the west
  cliff of Lingyun Mountain of Leshan, Sichuan
  Province. According to historical records, a
  notable monk named Haitong started its
  construction in 713 AD (the first year of the
  reign of Kaiyuan) of the Tang Dynasty. The work
  took 90 years.When it was new, the statue was
  covered with gold and colourful painting, with a
  thirteen-story pavilion to shield it. The
  pavilion was first called Giant Buddha Pavilion,
  then renamed Tianning Pavilion in the Song
  Dynasty, and eventually fell apart in the late
  Ming Dynasty. The Giant Buddha is located where
  the Minjiang, Qingyijiang and Daduhe rivers
  converge.

• Carved in the cliff, it is 71 metres high, its
  head reaching the top of the mountain and its
  feet resting on the riverside. Its instep is
  spacious enough for more than 100 people. In the
  viewers' eyes, the stately, imposing, magnificent
  statue is a mountain, and the mountain a statue
  of Buddha. In 1996, Leshan Giant Buddha, which
  has witnessed 1,200 years of vicissitudes, was
  included into the World Cultural Heritage List.

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Tibetan Antelopes --- Special Stamps
The Tibetan Antelopes, of the Genus Pantholops
Hodgsan, Bavidae, ARTIODACTYLA, is a rare species
found on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, ranging
mainly in Tibet, Xinjiang and Qinghai of China.
Tibetan antelopes inhabit on the plateau steppe
3500-5200 meters high above sea level, and
usually move in groups ranging from a handful to
over a thousand. The males and females live
separately in the season of breeding. The male
has long horns of as long as 0.6 meters, so it is
also called long-horn antelope. The rich
undercoat of the Tibetan antelope consists of
soft and fine wool, often in the colour of
yellow. Their population used to be more than
100,000, but has been reduced sharply over the
past tow decades. It is now the Grade I Wild
Animal under Key National Protection of China,
and has been included as a species under
protection into Appendices I to the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
Fauna and Flora.
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Peafowl
The female does not have tail coverts and is pale
brown on the back. Peafowl are precious birds
that people love as a symbol of auspiciousness.

• The peafowl, of genus peafowl, family
  Phasiamidae, is a non-migrant bird. There are
  only two species of it in the world. The green
  ones (Pavo muticus) are found in western and
  southern Yunnan of China and Southeast Asia, and
  the blue ones (Pavo cristanis) inhabit India and
  Sri Lanka. The white peafowl is the albino
  aberrant form of the blue peafowl. Peafowl dwell
  in subtropical grasslands and jungles less than
  2000 metres above sea level.

• They usually move in flocks of 3 or 5 and feed
  on grass seeds, fruits and insects. The male bird
  is over two metres in length, in iridescent blue
  and green, with a crest and tail coverts. The
  coverts make a splendid fan when spread, and are
  like a beautiful curtain when closed.

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Ancient Chinese Scientist (Set IV)
(Commemorative stamps)

• China is home to one of the most ancient
  civilizations in the world. The industrious,
  courageous and intelligent Chinese nation bred
  numerous outstanding scientists in its
  millennia-long history. The diagnosing method of
  pulse-feeling created by Bian Que of the Warring
  State Period is still used today in China. Note
  on Mathematics in Nine Sections by Liu Hui of Wei
  and Jin dynasties is a masterpiece in the world
  history of mathematics.

• The water-driven astronomical clock tower was the
  most accurate astronomical time-counting system
  in the Northern Song Dynasty. Exploitation of the
  Works of Nature by Song Yingxing, a Ming-dynasty
  scientist, is an encyclopedic work on
  technologies in ancient China.

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The Meteorite Shower over Jilin --- Special Stamps

• The meteorite shower that took place at 1500 on
  8 March 1976 over the northern suburbs of Jilin
  City, Yongji County, and the outskirts of Jiaohe
  City, Jilin Province, was recognized as the
  largest in recorded history, covering as
  approximately 500-square-kilometer area.
  Altogether 138 meteorites were collected,
  weighing 2,700 kilograms in total. Meteorite
  No.1, weighting 1,770 kg, was the largest
  meteorite from this shower, and the largest ever
  found in the world.

• Meteorite shower, known as a "shower of stones"
  in ancient times, is a phenomenon that occurs
  when a meteoroid passes through the earth's
  atmosphere at high speed, producing extreme heat
  due to friction, and falling in fragments towards
  the earth. China has the earliest records and
  research on meteorite showers.

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The Successful Flight of China's 1st Manned
Spaceship --- Stamps
On 16th October 2003, an indigenous LM-2F launch
vehicle successfully sent China's first manned
Shenzhou spaceship into a projected orbit from
Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. After conducing
various planned scientific experiments in space,
the first astronaut of China returned to the
ground safely when the return module landed in a
predetermined area of Inner Mongolia. As a
historic breakthrough, this magnificent feat has
realized the Chinese people's dream of
spaceflight, reflected Chinese nation's strength
of space science and technology, and had a great
significance for China's future.
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In Commemoration of the Opening of the Project To
Divert Water from the South to the North ---
Commemorative Stamps

• The projects, the tremendous strategic
  infrastructure to alleviate the water shortage in
  the north of China, have a great bearing on the
  sustainable economic and social development of
  the country in the future and long-term interests
  of generations. After 50 years f efforts in
  surveying, planning, designing, research and
  appraisal, it has been decided that 3 diversion
  channels be constructed in the east, middle and
  west to divert water from the lower, middle and
  upper reaches of the Yangtze Yellow, Huaihe and
  Haihe rivers flowing from west to east to realize
  a proper allocation of water resources across the
  country. The projects were officially started on
  27 December 2002 and will be completed by 2050

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The Three Gorges Project on the Yangtze River,
Generating Electricity --- Special stamps
The Three Gorges Project on the Yangtze River has
been the largest water control and hydropower
project in the world so far. By preventing
floods, generating electricity, providing water
transport and supplying water, the Three Gorges
Project will bring economic and social benefits
and accelerate China's modernization
construction. After ten years of construction,
the project has achieved its second-phase
targets, storing water on the left-bank dam, with
successful trial double-lane navigation through
five stages of ship locks, and with the first
generating sets starting operation and being
connected to the grid. This is a milestone in the
construction of the Three Gorges Project.
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Hukou Waterfall on the Yellow River (Special
stamp)

• The Hukou Waterfall , the only cataract on the
  Yellow River, is located in the bordering area
  between Jixian County of Shanxi Province and
  Yichuan County of Shannxi Province. At this
  point, the bed of the river abruptly turns
  narrow, forming a shape like a pot mouth (the
  Chinese for which is "hukou"), hence its name.

• The water falls over a precipice more than 30
  metres deep, which is a spectacular scene. The
  Yellow River symbolizes the courage and
  perseverance of the Chinese nation. The Chinese
  people are advancing with enormous enthusiasm
  towards their bright future, just like the
  surging torrent of the Yellow River. The words
  "Advancing with the time with indomitable will"
  are printed in pure gold foil on the souvenir
  sheet.

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APEC China 2001---Commemorative Stamp

• Established in 1989, the 21-member Asia Pacific
  Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a main forum for
  economic cooperation in the Asia Pacific region.
  It holds an annual Economic Leaders' Meeting
  preceded by a Ministerial Meeting. China became a
  member of APEC in 1991 and plays hosts to APEC
  Meeting in the year 2001.

• The 9th AEC Economic Leaders' Meeting takes place
  in Shanghai on 20-21 October. The theme of the
  2001 APEC Meetings is Meeting New Challenges in
  the New Century Achieving Common Prosperity
  through Participation and Cooperation.

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The Accession of China to the World Trade
Organization

• China submitted its application for the
  resumption of its GATT contracing party status on
  July 10, 1986 and the negotiations started
  thereafter. After 15 years' efforts, China
  finally became a WTO Member. The accession of
  China marks the integration of China into the
  multilateral trading system and will have
  positive and far-reaching effects on China's
  reform and opening up as well as on the
  development of world economy and trade.

• The Protocol on the Accession of China to the
  Marrakech Agreement Establishing the World
  Organization (WTO) was signed in Doha, Qatar on
  November 11, 2001. The WTO, located in Geneva,
  Switzerland , was established on January 1, 1995.
  Its predecessor was the General Agreement on
  Tariffs and Trade (GATT).China was one of the 23
  original contracting parties of GATT.

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World AIDS Day --- Commemorative Stamp
AIDS, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome, is
an infectious disease caused by virus, resulting
in loss of immune response to various diseases
and eventually in death of the patient. Ever
since the first case was diagnosed in 1981, AIDS
has spread across the whole world, seriously
threatening the health and lives of the people.
To facilitate control and final elimination of
AIDS, the World Health Organization designated
1st December each year the "World AIDS DAY".
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The Qinghai Lake (Special stamps)

• The Qinghai Lake, in northeast Qinghai Province,
  is surrounded by the Datong, Sun and Moon, and
  South mountains. It formed during the middle of
  the Cenozoic Era, and was known as West Sea in
  the ancient times. Covering an area of 4,600
  square kilometers, it is the largest saltwater
  lake in China, 3,200m high above sea level and
  29m deep.

• The lake teems with Gymnocipris przewalskii. The
  vast grassland by the lake is good for grazing.
  Among the six isles in the lake, the Isle of
  Birds is a habitat of migratory birds. In warm
  springs, it becomes a "paradise" for over 100,000
  birds, including barehead geese and great
  black-headed gulls. It is one of the nature
  reserves for birds in China.

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Ertan Hydropower Plant
The Ertan Hydropower Plant, located by the Yalong
River in Panzhihua, an emerging industrial city
in southern Sichuan Province, is China's largest
hydropower project in the 20th Century, with 6
turbine units of 550 MW each, a total installed
capacity of 3300 MW, and a yearly power
generation of 17 GWH.
Started in 1991 and completed at the end of 1999,
the project adopted world advanced technologies
and equipments, and set a national record of
installation rate for hydropower projects. The
project not only promoted the economic
development of Sichuan and Chongqing, but also
paved the way for the development of the entire
West of China, especially the southwestern areas.
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Huangguoshu Waterfalls---Special Stamps

• The cave behind the Waterfall is 134 metres long.
  Still intact inside the cave is an age-old
  carving of four Chinese characters, meaning "snow
  reflecting cloud". Watching sunset from inside
  the cave offers a mirage-like view.

• Huangguoshu Waterfall is the centre of the
  Huangguoshu scenic area. Located on the Baishui
  River, it is the largest of its kind in China and
  one of the most magnificent waterfalls in the
  world. It is 81 metres wide, with a drop of 74
  metres. Like the Milky Way descending from
  heaven, the Huangguoshu Waterfall rushes into the
  Xiniu pond. Its roaring sound can be heard
  several kilometres away.

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The Danxia Mountain --- Special Stamps

• The Danxia Mountain, located to the south of
  Renhua County in Guangdong Province, is known as
  one of the Most Famous Mountains of Guangdong,
  along with the Luofu, Siqiao, and Dinghu
  mountains. It got its name from its red sandy
  rock that gives it a brilliant colour like that
  of red clouds ("Danxia" in Chinese means "red
  cloud"). The mountain is a typical example of the
  "Danxia Landform" in geography.

• The Baozhu, Hailuo and Zhanglao peaks rise high
  in a forest of precipitous peaks, and the
  Jinjiang River meanders around them. The water of
  the river is so clear that one can see the
  colourful pebbles o the riverbed. Among the
  scenic attractions in the mountain are the rocks
  Haishan Gate, Yixiantian, Sky Ladder, and caves
  and rocks of various shapes. The Danxia Mountain,
  beautiful with its red rock and green waters, was
  put on UNESCO"s first list of World Geological
  Parks in February 2004.

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Plain Sailing --- Special-use Stamp

• The Chinese Phrase for "plain sailing", literally
  meaning riding a boat at full sail with a
  favorable wind all the way, is used to express
  success without any setback. The phrase
  originated from two lines of a poem by the
  Song-dynasty poet Yang Wanli "Tomorrow morning
  we'll part our ways at Duliang, Sailing home with
  a favorable wind." People of later generations
  have used it as a wish for a pleasant journey or
  success in career and life. "Plain sailing" on
  the individualized stamp expresses the user's
  best wishes for his or her relatives and friends.

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Mid-autumn Festival (Special stamps)
Mid-autumn Festival is one of the most important
traditional festivals to the Chinese nations. It
falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month,
just in the middle of autumn, when the skies are
clear, winds crisp and farmers share the
happiness of harvest.

• It originated in the remote past, got popular in
  the Han and Tang dynasties, and has been observed
  up to today, carrying with it enchanting legends
  and immortal poems and proverbs. The moon cake,
  symbolizing happiness and reunion, is the most
  typical food during the Mid-autumn Festival.

• At night, the moon hangs high in the sky,
  showering its silvery light on the ground. It is
  the most significant and idyllic moment for
  reunited families to appreciate the moon. The
  full moon will remind you of your family reunions
  even though you are far away from home, hence it
  is also called "Festival of Reunion".

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Duan Wu Festival---Special Stamps

• The traditional Dragon Boat Festival of China was
  on June 25 this year. Dragon boat race, eating
  zongzi and hanging out five-coloured thread are
  age-long activities to celebrate the holiday.
  Studies indicate that the Dragon Boat Festival
  originated in primitive people's worships of
  tribal totems. Legend has it that the holiday was
  initiated in memory of Qu Yuan, a stateman and
  patriolic poet of the Kingdom of Chu during the
  Warring States period. Qu Yuan was exiled by the
  king because of slandering by evil officiais.

• He drowned himself in the Miluo River on the 5th
  day of the 5th lunar month to express his
  devotion to his country. Deeply grieved, the
  local people threw many zongzi dumplings into the
  river so that the fish would not eat him and they
  tried to save him racing to his throwing spot by
  boat. Making Zongzi and dragon boat race have
  since become major activities to mark the
  festival.

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Yangliuqing Woodprint New Year Pictures (Special
stamps)

• The Yangliuqinig New Year Picture, a well known
  folk woodblock print for the lunar New Year in
  North China, originated during the late Ming
  Dynasty in Yangliuqing Country to the west of
  Tianjin, hence the name. It has a popular appeal
  and draws on elements from various areas such as
  folktales, figures from traditional operas,
  landscapes, birds and flowers.

It typically features large carp and chubby
babies that are drawn in a figurative style to
represent blessings and happiness. Combining
block chromatography and hand painting,
Yangliuqing New Year Pictures, with their
well-rounded composition and vivid colours, are
very popular among the people. They are used for
decorating rooms during festivals, embodying
hopes for a happy life.
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Taohuawu Woodprint New Year Pictures --- Special
Stamps

• In its early stage, the pictures of ladies,
  landscapes and flowers usually adopted the
  traditional composition and were of a graceful
  style. Pictures of the style of copperplate
  engraving emerged in the middle period of the
  Qing Dynasty under European influence. Later on
  the subject matters tented to be close to
  people's daily life and work. Most of the
  pictures express wishes for good fortune, or show
  opera stories, current events and customs, which
  the folks are fond of. The pictures are
  decorative, and popular for their techniques of
  exaggeration, vivid and bright colors, rich and
  lively contents.

• The Taohuawu Woodprint New Year Picture first
  appeared in the late Ming Dynasty and became
  popular during the reign of emperors Yongzheng
  and Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. It is one of
  the most widespread folk New Year picture school
  in southern China, featuring woodcut process
  printing and coloring.

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The Chou(Clown) Roles in Jingju(Peking
Opera)---Special Stamps
Jingju is the most popular and influential opera
in China. It has carried forward long-term
traditions of Chinese operas and has been
appreciated as the national opera. The roles in
Jingju are divided into four categories sheng,
dan, jing and chou. The chou roles stand
fundamentally for humorous, quick-witted, or
vivacious characters.
This type of roles can be recognized by the patch
of white in various shapes painted around the
eyes and nose. Sometimes these patches are
outlined in black or in other colors, hence the
name "partly painted face" or "painted face in
three colors".
The chou roles play different characters from
noble officials to ordinary people. The chou
roles leave a profound impression among audiences
with their vivid and funny actions.
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Chinese National Musical Stringed Instruments
It is acknowledged that this class of musical
instruments, with a lot of varieties, appeared
quite late in the history of musical instruments.
Their history in China dates back to the Tang
Dynasty, when Yazheng and Xiqin appeared, and the
Song Dynasty, when Maweihuqin appeared. With the
improvement and increase in variety of stringed
instruments through more than a thousand years of
development and evolvement, they became
indispensable master ad accompany instruments in
traditional Chinese operas and music. With rich
expressiveness and outstanding imitating
features, they display unique charm in solos and
are popular among the Chinese people.
A stringed instrument produces tones through the
vibrating strings, while the bow is drawn across
them, together with the reconating body.
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Traditional Sports of Ethnic Minorities of China
--- Special stamps
Traditional sports of Chinese ethnic minorities
came from production and life. With rich
contents, various forms and distinctive features,
the long-standing sports are very popular among
the Chinese ethnic minorities, showing strong
ethnic colours and vitality. The traditional
sports of Chinese ethnic minorities help enhance
the physical quality of the people, improving
understanding between different ethnic groups,
develop the splendid traditional cultures of the
ethnic minorities, and inspire the Chinese people
with the national spirit. Today, there are over
100 major traditional competitive and performance
events among the 55 ethnic minorities.
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In Commemoration of Beijing's Successful Bid for
Hosting 2008 Olympic Games

• At the 112th plenary Session of the International
  Olympic Committee held in Moscow on 13th July
  2001, Beijing was voted to be the host city for
  the 2008 Olympic Games. This stamp is issued to
  mark the occasion.

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The 21st Universiade---Commemorative Stamps

• The 21st Universiade was held in Beijing from
  22nd August to 1st September 2001. It was the
  first large-scale, international-level games in
  the new century and the first of its kind hosted
  by China. The 21st Universiade had 12 sports and
  168 events.

• About 7000 sportsmen abd sportswomen , and
  officials from 160 countries and regions
  participated, representing the largest scale and
  highest level of the Universiade in its history.
  They full demonstrated Chinese college students'
  youthful Vigor, and their love for friendship and
  peace.

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Kung Fu and Tae Kwon Do --- Joint Issue with
South Korea (Special stamps)

• Kung Fu and Tae Kwon Do are traditional folk
  sports of China and South Korea respectly. Both
  sports are for bodybuilding and fighting. The
  graceful and agile movements of kicking,
  striking, fighting and catching not only have
  high attacking and self-defense capabilities, but
  also are regarded as exquisite body arts and
  effective fit-keeping exercises.

• Kung Fu and Tae Kwon Do, popular among the
  peoples of the two countries and spread widely,
  have a history dating back afar and remain
  precious cultural heritages of the world sports
  history.

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The Ninth National Games of the People's Republic
of China---Commemorative Stamps

• The Ninth National Games of the People's Republic
  of China, the first large-scale, comprehensive
  national games in the new century and new
  millennium, were held from November 11 to 25,2001
  in Guangzhou. There were 30 events, including 345
  contests. More than 12,300 sportsmen from
  provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities
  directly under the central government, the PLA
  and various associations attended the
  preliminaries and finals with lofty sportsmanship
  and high spirits.

• The event fully displayed the great sports
  achievements of the nation, and symbolized a
  great stride the Chinese Nation had made into the
  21st Century as a giant in the East.

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Yue Fei, a Famous Ancient General ---
Commemorative Stamps
Yue Fei (1103 - 1142), alias Pengju, was a famous
general of the Southern Song Dynasty. Born in a
farmer's family in Tangyin, Xiangzhou Prefecture
(today's Henan Province), he was diligent and
eager to learn when he was young. Being adept in
Kung Fu skills, he volunteered to join the army
in the first year of Jingkang's Reign. It is said
that before he left home, his mother tattooed
"Loyalty to the Country" on his back, which was
the principle he followed till the end of his
life. As he was concerned about his men and set a
personal example before them, his troops were
highly disciplined and valiant and skillful in
battle. During the war against the invading Jin
army, he gained one after another victories and
recovered lost territories, winning high esteem
among the army and the people, and even arousing
the admiration of the enemy. Later he was framed
by the treacherous minister Qin Hui and executed
in Lin'an (today's Hangzhou) on trumped-up
charges. He has been and will always be respected
and admired by posterity for his unyielding
integrity.
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A Tale of Xu Xian and the White Snake
The tragic love story of Xu Xian and the White
Snake is a fairy tale widely circulated among the
Chinese people. According to the story, the White
Snake, in the appearance of a beautiful lady, met
a yong man called Xu Xian by the Broken Bridge by
the West Lake. They got married and ran a
pharmacy in Zhenjiang. Their happy marital life
was disturbed several times by Monk Fa Hai from
the Jinshan Temple, who finally seperated the
couple by confining the White Snake under the
Leifeng Pagoda using wizardry. The story of the
White Snake originated from a reported discovery
of a huge boa. The plot has the same source as
"The Three Pagadas by the West Lake" written in
the Southern Song Dynasty. The story has various
versions from different times and areas, and has
developed in long years into a popular, beautiful
folk tale
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The Story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, a Folk
Legend --- Special stamps
The story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai has
been a household love story in China for more
than 1000 years. The heroine Zhu Yingtai,
disguised as a man, becomes bosom friends with
Liang Shanbo, a classmate of hers for 3 years.
Before returning home, Yingtai implies to shanbo
that she will be his wife. Knowing that Yingtai
is woman, the delighted Shanbo hurries to her
home, only to find that her family has betrothed
her to someone else against her will. Under the
pressure of the patriarchal clan rules and feudal
ethics, they die for love and return into a pair
of butterflies. The moving tragic legend extols
pure love and freedom of love. First appearing in
the early Tang Dynasty, the story was put on the
stage in the Song and Yuan dynasties, and plays
based on the story was widely performed during
the Ming and Wing dynasties. The story has been
handed down to this day in manifold forms.
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Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio---One of
China' s Famous Classical Literary Works(First
Group)------Special Stamps

• These strange stories by Pu Songling are rich in
  imagination. The language, both tasteful and
  vulgar, is vivid and free and easy. While talking
  about ghosts, these stories criticize the harsh
  ways of the society and eulogize the noble moral
  characters in order to educate the people.

• Of them, the masterpiece" Taoist Priest from
  Laoshan" tells a person who loves ease and hates
  works. Wishing to succeed by luck, he comes to
  Lanshan to learn skills but fails. Reading the
  story people do not know whether to laugh or cry.
  But from it people draw inspirations. In the past
  several hundred years, the book has spread widely.

48
Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio---One of
China's Famous Classical Literary Works(2nd
group)
Pu Songling, a writer of the Qing Dynasty,
created a series of vivid, amazing characters in
his work, Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio,
a collection of short stories. Pianpian, the
fairy who can turn a green leaf into a chicken of
fish and make winter coat with white clouds, and
the poem-therapy in Bai Qiulian, the fish
spirit's case give the readers endless reveries.
The fantastic stories of ghosts and fox spirits
are beautiful and fascinating, demonstrating
their unique artistic style and charm. Strange
Stories from a Chinese Studio has been widely
read for over 300 years and well known both in
China and abroad. It had a great influence on
later short stories in classical Chinese.
49
Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio, One of
China's Famous Classical Literary Works (Third
Set) --- Special Stamps
Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio, by Pu
Songling, a writer of the Qing Dynasty, is a
collection of about 500 supernatural short
stories. Many of the stories are about love and
marriage, such as "Xiang Yu", "Huanniang" and "Ah
Xiu". The love stories are among the best in the
collection, praising true love of young people
while lashing out at the feudal ethics. With a
graceful style of writing, detailed narration and
description, the stories of flower and fox
spirits reflect the reality of life, and contain
the author's indignation and hopes. They
represent a peak of ancient Chinese short stories.
50
Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio---One of
China' s Famous Classical Literary Works(First
Group)------Special Stamps

• State Post Bureau issued a set of four special
  stamps under the title"Strange Stories from a
  Chinese Studio,One of China's Famous Classical
  Literary Works(First Group)"on Aprial 21,2001.

• Their combined face value is five yuan and
  titles are "Ying Ning","A Bao","Mask of an
  Evildoer"and "Stealing Peach".At eht same time,a
  souvenir sheet was issued under the title"Taoist
  Priest from Laoshan"with a face value of eight
  yuan.

51
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