Issued by Hong Kong

Issued on Jan 26, 2013

Issued for : The use of animals to mark the 12 components of the Lunar New Year Cycle is a long-held tradition in China. Frequently used as the theme for Chinese arts and crafts since ancient times, the 12 Chinese zodiac animals have profound significance in Chinese folk handicrafts. 2013 is the Year of the Snake. This issue is the second Lunar New Year special stamp issue in the fourth series released by Hongkong Post. The four stamps use different types of traditional Chinese arts and crafts to signify the theme of the Year of the Snake.

Designs :
$1.40 – The distinctiveness of snakes is captured by incorporating Chinese paper–cutting techniques.

$2.40 – Rendered in Chinese ink and wash painting, the slithering movement of a snake is vividly portrayed in the stamp.

$3.00 – The stamp depicts two seals – one carved with the bronze inscription of the word “snake” (left) and the other with a motif of a snake (right).

$5.00 – A coiled snake shape jade pendant depicted in the stamp is carved according to the natural colour and shape of the jade.

Designed by : KAN Tai–keung

Type : Stamps, Mint condition

Watermark : No

Colour : Multicolour

Denomination : 1.40, 2.40, 3 & 5 Dollar

Stamp Size : 4.50 x 2.80 cms.

Perforation : 13.3 x 14.3 (one elliptical perforation on each vertical)

Paper : Paper with security fibres

Stamp Layout : Pane of 25 stamps

Printer : Joh. Enschedé B.V., the Netherlands

Printing Process : Lithography

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Issued by India

Issued on Apr 14, 2010

Issued for : Without any partisanship on the veracity or otherwise of astrology and the occult arts, the Department of Posts offers a set of stamps on zodiac astrological signs, along with a miniature sheet.

Design : The designs of the stamps are rooted in Indian folk art and depict the 12 zodiac signs – against four base colours which reflect the elements of earth, air, fire and water. The miniature sheet is based on the format of a horoscope, a different version of which is also reflected on the First Day Cover, each of the four reflecting a different element.

We hope this set delights collectors as well as the casual customers of stamps – as much as it has made the Department of Posts happy to present this Special Set.

Credits :
Miniature Sheet, Stamp & FDC : Bharti Mirchandani
Cancellation & Brochure Cover : Alka Sharma

Type : Miniature Sheet, Mint condition

Colour : Multi colour

Denomination : 500 Paise each

Stamps Printed : 0.8 Million each

Miniature Sheets : 0.8 Million

Printing Process : Wet Offset

Printer : India Security Press, Nasik

About : 

• The occult has always held a fascination for the human mind. Whether it is deemed an art or a mathematically accurate science, the fascination remains. We always wonder what are the basic characteristics we possess and what we reveal to the world, and many of us would like to know what the future holds for us. From the days of Vedic astrology and the Delphic Oracle to current days, we have an inherent curiosity about ourselves, our past and future. If the current newspapers, magazines and the media are anything to go by, the interest in astrology and the occult is decidedly on the rise.
• Many countries and schools of thought have their own set of symbols, signs and significant methods of assessing a person or predicting an event. The twelve zodiac signs are represented by figures and symbols and associated with constellations and planets and their old Greek, or Roman or Indian legends. Lunar signs are also followed by some systems. Nostradamus is still studied, while another group questions the veracity of his predictions. The Chinese calendar draws up its projections on the basis of a sixty year cycle, where each year of twelve year cycle is represented by an animal, including the mythical dragon, and combined with the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire and earth. The Runes and I-Ching provide yet another method of prediction, while Tarot cards, often used for meditation, have today become an instrument for prediction.

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Issued by India

Issued on Jun 22, 2002

Issued for : The Department of Posts is happy to issue a set of postage stamps honouring Babu Gulabrai and Pandit Suryanarayan Vyas.

Credits :
Stamp & FDC : Bharti Mirchandani
Cancellation : Alka Sharma

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Colour : Four Colour

Denomination : 400 Paise

Overall size : 2.90 x 3.91 cms.

Printing size : 2.55 x 3.55 cms.

Perforation : 13.5 x 13.5 with elliptical hole on each 39.1 mm sides

Paper : Matt Chromo

Stamps Printed : 0.4 million

Number per issue sheet : 40

Printing Process : Photo Offset

Printer : Calcutta Security Printers Ltd.

Name : Surya Narayan Vyas

Born on 1902 at Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, India

Died on 1976

About :

• The Department of Posts issues a set of two stamps on Babu Gulabrai and Pandit Suryanarayan Vyas respectively, as part of the ongoing personality series.
• Pandit Suryanarayan Vyas (1902-1976), who made a mark as a writer, scholar and astrologer was also a proponent of India’s rich tradition in art, literature and culture. He was actively involved in the freedom struggle in his youth. He played a leadership role in the Satyagraha Movements in Malwa and Ajmer and was sentenced to jail by the British rulers. He realized the importance of enabling the common man to get rid of his psychological slavery. He set out to instill self-respect in the masses. It was with this objective that he initiated the All India Kalidas Festival in Ujjain in the year 1928, which has now become an important event in the national calendar. He used his writings, journals and even the medium of film to create a sense of pride among the common man in the country’s glorious past. He was the guiding spirit behind the feature films Kavi Kalidas and Samrat Vikramaditya. Pandit Vyas published more than 50 books in different languages and edited numerous journals. The country honoured him with Padma Bhushan in 1958.
• Text : Based on material furnished by the sponsors.

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Issued by People’s Republic of China

Issued on Jan 5, 1998

Issued for : The New Year 1998, Year of the Tiger

Picture : New Year 1998 (Year of the Tiger)

Type : Stamps, Mint Condition

Colour : Multicolored

Denomination : 50 & 150 Fen

Perforation : 11½

Printing Process : Photogravure & Engraved

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Issued by India

Issued on Dec 13, 1997

Issued for : The Department of Posts is pleased to release a special commemorative stamp on Shri Hazari Prasad Dwivedi on the occasion of his birth anniversary.

Type : First Day Cover

Colour : Multi Colour

Denomination : 200 Paise

Overall size : 3.91 x 2.90 Cms.

Printing size : 3.55 x 2.54 Cms.

Perforation : 13 x 13

Paper : Indigenous un w/m Adhesive Gravure Coated Stamp Paper

Stamps Printed : 0.4 Million

Number per issue sheet : 35

Printing Process : Photogravure

Printer : India Security Press, Nasik

Name : Hazari Prasad Dwivedi

Born on Aug 19, 1907 at Dubey–ka–Chhapra village, Ballia district, United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, British India

Died on May 19, 1979 at India

About : 

• Hazari Prasad Dwivedi was born in District Balia (U.P.) and keeping with family tradition got his early education in Sanskrit. In 1930 he passed the Inter-mediate and Acharya Examination in Astrology from Banaras Hindu University. From 1940 to 1950 he was the Director of Hindi Bhavan in Vishvabharti (West Bengal). He came in close contact with Rabindranath Tagore during his stay in Shantiniketan. It is said that the deep faith in the human spirit which is developed and later manifested in his writings took roots under the influence of Tagore.
• He was appointed a member of the first Official Language Commission in the year 1955 and was awarded Padma Bhushan in 1957. In 1960, he was offered the post of Professor and head of the Department of Hindi by the Punjab University, Chandigarh, a post which he held almost till his retirement. However, a little before retirement he came back to the Banaras Hindu University as its rector and ultimately chaired the U.P. Hindi Academy.
• He made an effort to analyse Hindi literature in the context of Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit and Apabhransha literature and also as a natural development of composite Indian thought. He believed that the basic concern of great literature should be to uphold human values and this can only be achieved by keeping in mind the broad base of unified stream of humanity and not limit it to the elitist sensibility. Therefore, in all his writings whether on a particular period or a poet, Dwivediji based his conclusion primarily on this concern for human values. He wrote an essay on the theme “Human being is the goal of all human activity including literature”. ‘Hindi sahitya ki bhumika’ is his most significant work as his basic principles and approach to literature are manifested in this work.
• In his four lectures compiled under the heading ‘Hindi sahitya ka adikal’, he has reinterpreted the new discoveries and researches in a manner that necessitated a fresh enquiry into the history of Hindi literature.
• “Banabhatta ki Atmakatha” which was followed by Punarnava and others like ‘Charuchandralekh’ Anamdas ka Potha also initiates a prose style, not commonly used even for historical themes. He offers lengthy descriptions in an ornate prose style, which evokes a historical panorama. He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi annual prize for his collection of essays ‘Alok Parva’ in 1973.
• Credits : Encyclopedia of Indian Literature Vol. II by Nirmala Jain, Sahitya Academy, New Delhi.

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