Stamp collectors lining up before post offices are not disappointed. After the last version of Monkey Year stamps twelve years ago, they find with surprise and jubilation that the monkey this year is the first smiling one in 24 years!
People have good reason to particularly expect the coming out of a Monkey Year stamp, for the series stamps of Chinese Zodiac, which include 12 animals, began from a monkey in 1980.
Shao Bailin, designer of China's first ever Monkey Year stamp, is still filled with excitement when recalling the birth of this precious stamp. "That is in 1979", he told, "one day I went to visit our renowned painter Huang Yongyu and asked him for a design for animal stamps. Mr. Huang suggested, why not issue a series of Animal Signs? I thought it was a good idea. Later I visited again to take his design. When I saw the vivid, lovely little monkey, I knew an excellent stamp had been born".
This Monkey Year stamp depicts a little black monkey in a sitting position, charmingly na?ve. Although Monkey only ranks the ninth in China's 12 Animal Signs, it leapt to the first in stamps thanks to Huang's drawing. Then, it became an established practice to invite famous painters to produce the main design of China's first round Zodiac stamps.
The second round stamps laid stress on the style of folk painting, and drew inspiration from traditional stuffed or clay toys. In 1992 two Monkey Year stamps were issued. One is a colorful monkey head in paper cutting showing up from a "Longevity Peach", the other presents a Chinese character of "Hou (monkey)" in seal style, surrounded by paper-cutting designs showing magpies, a lucky bird in China, hopping on plum branches.
While the 2004 Monkey Year stamp is of vivid colors and unique style. It has a cartoon flavor and the monkey is smiling. The third-round monkey stamp is to bring out the spirit of the time on the basis of preserving traditional cultural characteristics. Besides, the stamp this year also got improved in its printing technique.
(China Daily January 20, 2004)
