Chunghwa Post is to issue a new stamp set on Friday featuring the calligraphy of Su Shi (蘇軾), a renowned poet and writer from the Song Dynasty, to mark the National Palace Museum’s centennial this year.
The stamp is to feature the third part of a calligraphic manuscript of Su’s Former Ode on the Red Cliffs (前赤壁賦), which he wrote following a boat excursion with friends to Hubei Province’s Red Cliffs in 1082.
In the piece, Su writes about the famous battle during China’s Three Kingdoms period and ponders the meaning of life.
Photo courtesy of the Chunghwa Post
Prior to the issuance of the new stamp set, the state-run postal firm published the first and second parts of the manuscript on Sept. 25 and Nov. 20 last year respectively.
Along with the new stamps, Chunghwa Post would sell first-day set covers, postcards and collection folders, it said.
People can buy first-day covers, stamp cards, stamp protection cards, loose-leaf philatelic cards and postcards tomorrow, it said.
People seeking to collect all three parts of the Former Ode on the Red Cliffs can also place an order on Friday at the 37 post offices that handle philatelic services (www.post.gov.tw/post/internet/Philately/index.jsp?ID=512).
As part of the museum’s centennial celebration, the National Palace Museum has also compiled a book of 25 carefully selected calligraphic manuscripts from Su, which is to be released on Oct. 1.
A collector’s edition of the Red Cliffs stamp sets would also be enclosed in the book, the museum said.
It offers a special discount for those who preorder the book from Saturday next week to Sept. 30. People can visit the museum’s Web site at www.npmshops.com for details.
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