Scott No: 1337-39
Serial number: J16
Values in set: 3
Date of issue: May 1, 1977
Denomination: 8 fen
Designer: Liu Yongcheng
Size of stamps: 40*30mm
Perforation: 11*11.5
Sheet composition: 50(5*10)
Printing process: Photogravure
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

J16 "30th Anniversary of the Founding of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region" commemorative stamps were issued on May 1, 1977. The set consists of 3 stamps, printed by photogravure, designed by Liu Yongcheng, and printed by the Beijing Stamp Factory. Stamp size 40 mm × 30 mm, perforation gauge 11 × 11.5, 50 stamps per sheet (5 × 10), with a total face value of 0.38 yuan for the set; (3-1) 8 fen, (3-2) 10 fen, (3-3) 20 fen, each with a circulation of 7.5 million copies.

Theme of the Set

The Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region was established on May 1, 1947, and is the earliest autonomous region for ethnic minorities established in China; 1977 marked the 30th anniversary of its founding. Over the thirty years, under the system of regional ethnic autonomy, the people of all ethnic groups in Inner Mongolia struggled in unity, relied on local resources to develop the iron and steel industry and transform the grassland pastoral areas, and promoted the simultaneous development of agriculture and animal husbandry and industry. This set presents the new construction appearance of the autonomous region from three angles—ethnic unity and celebration, the Baotou iron and steel industry, and grassland pastoral area construction—praising the achievements of the Mongolian and Han peoples and other ethnic groups working together with one heart to build the northern frontier homeland, and commemorating the thirty-year development course of the autonomous region.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Celebrating Victory

In the design, workers, peasants, herdsmen, PLA soldiers, and children gather joyfully; people of all ethnic groups, with happy faces, hold flowers, lambs, and seedlings, and balloons and lanterns are dotted in the air; "1947–1977" is marked at the top of the design. It symbolizes the harmony and unity of all ethnic groups in Inner Mongolia and their joint celebration of the 30th anniversary of the founding of the autonomous region.

Grassland Steel City

The design presents the Baotou iron and steel base, with factory buildings, blast furnaces, and towers standing in rows, trains loaded with ore traveling across the grassland, and wildflowers blooming on the plains. Baotou is known as the grassland steel city and is an important iron and steel industrial base in north China, representing a landmark achievement of Inner Mongolia's heavy industry construction.

New Look of the Pastoral Area

The design shows the vast grassland, green as a carpet, with flowers everywhere, herds of cattle and sheep grazing within enclosed pastures, and power transmission towers extending into the distance. It presents the brand-new appearance of pastoral areas promoting rotational grazing, building forage bases, and supporting power facilities, as traditional pastoral areas move toward scientific livestock raising.

Artistic Design Features

The set uniformly adopts a horizontal stamp format, with Mongolian decorative text at the bottom of the stamps, giving distinctive ethnic characteristics. The first design is warm and festive, and the latter two focus on realistic scenery, with the grassland expansive and open. The poster style is bright and fresh, with soft, transparent colors. The photogravure printing has natural layers. There is no souvenir sheet for this set. It is a classic commemorative stamp on the theme of ethnic minority autonomous regions of the JT period.