Start of the sale:
Friday, 13 April 2012 at 07:12
Item n°169098929
Sale ends:
Thursday, 16 May 2024 at 16:04
Technical Details:
Serial number: 2008-16
Values in set: 4
Denomination: 4.80 yuan
Date of issue: July 6, 2008
Designer of stamp: Wang Huming
Photographer: Wang Jianlin
Editor in Charge: Shi Yuan
Size of stamp: 33 * 44 mm for (4-1)(4-2);44 * 33 for (4-3)(4-4)
Perforation: 13.5 * 13 for (4-1)(4-2);13 * 13.5 for (4-3)(4-4)
Sheet composition: 16
Size of sheet: 165 * 220 for (4-1)(4-2);220 * 165 for (4-3)(4-4)
Printing process: photogravure
Printer: Beijing Stamp Printing House
(4-1)T Bodhisattva 1.20yuan
(4-2)T Heavenly Kings(Caturmaharajakayikas) 1.20yuan
(4-3)T Flying Apsaras 1.20yuan
(4-4)T Maitreya Preaching 1.20yuan
Background Informations:
On July 6, 2008, China National Philatelic Corporation issued a set of two first-day covers affixed with a set of four special stamps, entitled \"Qiuci Grotto Murals\". Totaling 4.80 yuan in face value, the four special stamps are titled \"Bodhisattva\" , \"Heavenly Kings(Caturmaharajakayikas)\" , \"Flying Apsaras\" , \"Maitreya Preaching\" respectively.
The Qiuci grottoes are scattered on more than 20 sites in the area of ancient Qiuci Kingdom(today´s Kuche County and some of its neighboring counties in Aksu Prefecture, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region).Founded in the 3rd century and ended in the 12th century, Qiuci Kingdom was one of the cradles of the Buddhist culture in China. Its grotto murals were mainly devoted to religious subjects and also included such contents as farming, hunting, dancing, and folk customs. On the basis of integrating the Oriental and Western cultures, the murals gradually formed their own artistic style. At present, there are more than 600 Qiuci grotto remains, housing nearly 10,000 square meters of murals. Kzir Grotto, a typical representative of the Qiuci grottoes, is the first Buddhist grotto in Chinese history
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