Saturday 14 September 2013

Some really old and rare Japanese and Chinese Stamps: 1900-1958



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This Stamp commemorates the Coronation of a Japanese Emperor

One of the challenges for any stamp collector is to decipher the language of stamps that don’t use an internationally spoken language. Some of the Japanese stamps in my collection are indecipherable because of the language. I have tried deciphering what was written on the stamps in my collection but to no avail. All I could guess is the approximate dates of the issue of the stamps. In spite of the language problem, one can admire and appreciate the designs on these stamps!
I have tried to club my stamps thematically according to the pictures and symbols on them.

People/Personalities


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A Pilot saluting the Flag?
                       




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The above stamp portrays Sun Yat-sen
   

The stamp above is an example of how things were in those times, especially as Beijing fell to the Japanese army. The stamps were overprinted as existing plates were probably behind enemy lines. In this case you can see 800 overprinted on the stamp. Sun Yat-sen was a Doctor, philosopher and a great leader.


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    IMG_1395
                    But then who can ignore the contribution of the worker?

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Great Thinkers and Policy Makers?


Japanese Traditional Clothing

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The dates of issue of the above stamps might range from 1900s to 1958! Their age might add to their rarity!
I had problems in deciphering what was written on the stamps above. It was only after a blogger titled Thomilas World informed me that a stamp that I had captioned as a man with a regal pose is, in fact, a stamp depicting Sun Yatsen who according to Wikipedia :

Sun Yat-sen (12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925)[1][2] was a Chinese revolutionary, first president and founding father of the Republic of China. As the foremost pioneer of the Republic of China, Sun is referred to as the "Father of the Nation" in the Republic of China (ROC), and the "forerunner of democratic revolution" in the People's Republic of China. Sun played an instrumental role in the overthrow of the Qing dynasty during the years leading up to the Double Ten Revolution. He was appointed to serve as Provisional President of  The Republic of China, when it was founded in 1912. He later co-founded the Kuomintang (KMT), serving as its first leader.[3] Sun was a uniting figure in post-Imperial China, and remains unique among 20th-century Chinese politicians for being widely revered amongst the people from both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

5 comments:

  1. The one with the "Regal pose" is Chinese, from around 1931.. He is Sun Yatsen.

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  2. Thank you so much, Thomilla! I have made the correction. I really can't read Mandarin or even Japanese, and there was no one to tell me. Yes the likeness to Sun Yatsen is evident!

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  3. I have the third traditional Japanese clothing how rare is it really in today's market for collectors

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  4. I have the third traditional Japanese clothing how rare is it really in today's market for collectors

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    1. Hello Patrick, I am not sure about Japanese clothing, as my field of expertise is limited to stamps. Perhaps you could check on the Internet by typing the key words?

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