China Post Releases Cute and Collectible Rat Stamps in Lead up to CNY
We are living in such a technologically advanced age that even the word 'email' sounds a bit outdated, so god knows when you last actually went to the post office to buy a stamp. Yet, while the practical function of the stamp is diminishing, it continues to be a highly collectible item for philatelists the world over, and an interesting cultural artifact.
In honor of the approaching year of the rat, China Post has just released its latest range of rat-themed zodiac stamps, featuring designs by Shandong-born Han Meilin who is probably best known for creating the Fuwa mascots for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Han is quite an old hand in the stamp game, having also designed stamps for the year of the pig in both 1983 and 2019, and the year of the rooster in 2017.
This year's edition is said to take inspiration by the Chinese folklore, according to which the Big Bang was more like a small nibble. As the story goes, the heavens split when one particularly naughty rat nibbled through the fabric of time and space itself, thus creating the universe (鼠咬天开 shǔ yǎo tiān kāi). We don't honestly see the reference in the stamps but the colorful rats are cute nonetheless.
The first zodiac-themed stamp was the monkey stamp back in 1980 (top right in the image above), which has since become a valued collector's item worth valued at RMB 56,000 for a sheet of four on JD. Since then, it has been the tradition for China Post to commission an artist to design each year's stamps before releasing them in the lead up for Chinese New Year.
Perhaps surprisingly, China wasn’t the first country to release Chinese zodiac-themed stamps, with Japan releasing a tiger stamp way back in 1950. For quite a long time, the Chinese zodiac was a theme that only appeared on stamps in Asian countries but by the '90s, the popularity of Chinese zodiac stamps had taken off and by 2002 an estimated 1,800 different Chinese zodiac-style stamps had been released around the world.
Over time, the designs and formats have become increasingly diverse, with artists using a variety of approaches to interpret this unique aspect of Chinese culture. Below, we've collected several country's designs for the upcoming year:
The China Post rat stamp has been on sale since Jan 5, 2020. A single stamp costs RMB 2.40, while a small booklet of 10 costs RMB 12 and features two different designs. You can buy your own set via China Post's official website here.
READ: The Rat's Complicated Image Problem in Chinese Culture
Images: China Post
