Most of the Chinese New Year stamps issued by China are based on the twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac. Most, but not all. There are also a number of stamps that show the various New Year's customs in China, which are attractively designed.

Chinese Paper-Cut Design

The China Post issued a set of four-piece stamps called "The Spring Festival" on January 29th 2001, including "Celebrating the New Year", "Farewell for the Last Year", "She Huo Custom" and "Happy Reunion". All of the designs of the above stamps are in the Chinese window paper-cut style. Also, Macau issued another set of paper-cut stamps called "The Chinese Year" on April 6th, 1994, which show Chinese folk-customs during the New Year. "Asking for Gift Money" shows a little girl asking her granny for gift money. This is a traditional custom for Chinese children. In "Writing Couplet", an old man is writing the Chinese character "福" (good fortune) and in the Chinese traditional couplet, both of which are done in the typical Chinese way. According to the two sets of stamps, it is clear that mainland and Macau customs are the same.

Chinese Woodcut Design

A four-piece stamp set called "Chinese Traditional Festivals" issued in Hong Kong on June 8th 1994 was designed in the style of a Chinese woodcut. One stamp of the four is called "The Lunar New Year". The design of it is very Chinese: Lion dancing, people setting off firecrackers and a typical Chinese wish on the top "吉祥如意" (Wishing you good luck and hope all you dreams come true), as well as another wood-cut-style stamp issued in Hong Kong ten years later. This time the flower wagon, Chinese dragon and red carp were added to the design.

Chinese New Year Stamps in Foreign Countries

China has the largest population in the world Chinese people are scattered throughout different countries. Because of this, many countries have issued sets of stamps with Chinese New Year themes.

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