China 2018-28M "Book of Songs" Stamp Miniature Sheet
The stamp miniature sheet offered this time is a set of six stamps with a total face value of 8.90 Chinese Yuan.
Names, face values, and issuance quantities of the six stamps
Image Sequence Image Title Face Value Issuance Quantity
(6-1) T Zhou Nan · Guan Ju 80 Fen 9.6938 million pieces
(6-2) T Qin Feng · Jian Jia 1.20 Yuan 9.6938 million pieces
(6-3) T Qin Feng · Wu Yi 1.20 Yuan 9.6938 million pieces
(6-4) T Xiao Ya · Lu Ming 1.20 Yuan 9.6938 million pieces
(6-5) T Xiao Ya · He Ming 1.50 Yuan 9.6938 million pieces
(6-6) T Lu Song · Ma Mou 3 Yuan 9.6938 million pieces
Stamp specifications: 40×35 mm
Perforation: 13×13.5
Number of stamps per sheet: 6 stamps (one set)
Sheet size: 135×220 mm
Edition: Embossed overprint
Anti-counterfeiting methods: Security paper, anti-counterfeiting ink, irregular perforations, fluorescent spray code
Designer: Gao Yun
Engravers: Xu Zhe, Liu Minghui, Yin Xiaofei, Yang Zhiying, Liu Bo, Li Hao
Sheet border design: Xia Jingqiu
Information provided by: Liaoning Provincial Museum
Editor: He Jinmei
Printing Factory: Beijing Stamp Factory
The "Book of Songs" is the beginning of ancient Chinese poetry, the earliest collection of poems, gathering poetry from the early Western Zhou Dynasty to the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period (11th century to 6th century BC), totaling 311 poems. Among them, 6 are Shi songs, with only titles and no content, known as the "Six Shi Songs" (Nan Gai, Bai Hua, Hua Shu, You Kang, Chong Wu, You Yi), reflecting the social aspects over about five hundred years from the early Zhou to the late Zhou period.
The authors of the "Book of Songs" are unknown, with most unverifiable, traditionally attributed to the collection by Confucius. The "Book of Songs" was known as the "Shi" during the Pre-Qin period, or referred to as the "Three Hundred Poems." It was elevated to a Confucian classic in the Western Han Dynasty, called the "Book of Songs," a title that has been retained to this day. The "Book of Songs" is divided into the "Feng," "Ya," and "Song" sections. "Feng" consists of folk songs from various regions during the Zhou Dynasty; "Ya" contains the proper music of the Zhou people and is further divided into "Xiao Ya" and "Da Ya"; "Song" encompasses the ceremonial songs of the Zhou court and noble families, further divided into "Zhou Song," "Lu Song," and "Shang Song."
Confucius summarized the purpose of the "Book of Songs" as "without evil" and taught his disciples to read the "Book of Songs" as a standard for speech and conduct. Many Pre-Qin scholars quoted from the "Book of Songs" in their arguments to enhance their persuasiveness, such as Mencius, Xunzi, Mozi, Zhuangzi, and Han Feizi. By the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the "Book of Songs" had been revered as a Confucian classic, becoming one of the "Six Classics" and the "Five Classics."
The content of the "Book of Songs" is rich, reflecting aspects of labor and love, war and servitude, oppression and resistance, customs and marriage, ancestor worship and banquets, even celestial phenomena, topography, animals, plants, and more, serving as a mirror of Zhou society's life.
This issue of the "Book of Songs" stamps follows the 2009 "Tang Poetry," 2012 "Song Lyrics," and 2014 "Yuan Qu" as the fourth set of classical poetry stamps. The "Book of Songs" stamps continue the previous three varieties, using the method of pairing poems with illustrations, presented in the form of individual miniature sheets, serving as both a set of stamps and a collection of mini and large sheets.