Official seals from the People's Republic of China are perhaps the most confusing of all. There have been nearly 150 different designs recorded to date, many created for use by individual provinces or for a few of the largest cities. Issue dates have not been determined on any so they are all best categorized by design type. No attempt will be made here to show examples of each design, there are just too many. Representive seals of the major designs are shown to give an idea of the great variety of seals available. Collectors interested in further study in this area are referred to the listings prepared by Mr. Hendrik J. Orange. He catalogs them by "Group."
Date issued: Unknown
Printing: Green on white paper
Perforation: rough 11 1/2
Inscription: Chinese "People's Republic of China Postal Service / Damaged when received, resealed by post office / Signature of the Clerk (lower left) / Signature of the Supervisor (lower right)"
Control Number: none
Description: Soiled and damaged circa 1971 Cultural Revolution period domestic cover, with 8 fen "Revolutionary Opera" single, from Shing An Ling to Hanzhou with an unlisted Group 1A type official seal applied over right edge. Officially sealed Cultural Revolution covers are relatively scarce.
All Group 1A seals have shaded backgrounds. Thirteen different type have been recorded. Date issued: Unknown, EKU March 9, 1993
Printing: Deep olive green on white paper
Perforation: rough 11
Inscription: Bilingual Chinese/Uighur
"People's Republic of China Postal Service / Damaged when received, resealed by post office / Signature of the Clerk (lower left) / Signature of the Supervisor (lower right)"
Control Number: none
Description: 1993 cover from Wuhu, Anhui Province to Gongliu, Xinjiang Province, repaired at left with single Xinjiang Province Group 1B label. Seal tied front and reverse by bilingual Chinese/Uighur Gongliu March 9th datestamps.
Similar in design to the Group 1A seals, except with unshaded backgrounds. They can be easily distinguished by their bilingual Chinese/Uighur text, along with having a star in the center above the rice ears. Five types are known. Updated July 24, 2003
Catalog:
Catalog: Oranje Group 1B-3
© Copyright 2003
- Buying, Selling, & Trading Officially Sealed Mails of the World -
by T. Hirn
E-mail:thirn@poseal.com