Scott No: 2068-69
Serial number: J134
Values in set: 2
Date of issue: December 1, 1986
Denomination: 28 fen
Designers: Hu Zhengyuan
Engraver: Hu Zhengyuan, Gao Pinzhang
Size of stamps: 30*40mm
Perforation: 11.5*11
Sheet composition: 50(10*5)
Printing process: Engraving and photogravure
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

J134 "Centenary of the Birth of Comrade Zhu De" commemorative stamps were issued on December 1, 1986. The set consists of 2 stamps, printed by engraving, with a stamp size of 40 × 30 mm, perforation gauge 11.5, and 50 stamps per sheet (5 × 10). Designed by Yang Lizhou and Wang Yingchun, engraved by Gao Pinzhang and Sun Hongnian, and printed by the Beijing Stamp Factory.

Theme of the Set

Zhu De was a great Marxist, a proletarian revolutionary, statesman, and military strategist, one of the principal founders of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, and a founding father of the People's Republic of China. In his early years he devoted himself to the Revolution of 1911, led the Nanchang Uprising, joined forces at Jinggangshan, and served for a long time as commander-in-chief of the people's army. He went through the Long March, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and the War of Liberation, and spared no effort for national independence, the liberation of the people, and the construction of New China. This set commemorates the centenary of Zhu De's birth, selecting two classic images and honoring his life of outstanding achievements and a heart as broad as the sea, remembering "the glory of the people."

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Portrait of Marshal Zhu De

The image is a standard half-length portrait of Zhu De in marshal's ceremonial uniform, wearing marshal's epaulettes and medals, with a solemn and majestic expression, steady and resolute.

Comrade Zhu De Speaking at the Army Day Rally, 1950

The image shows Zhu De in a Zhongshan suit with a corsage on his chest, leaning over a desk and speaking, recreating the historical moment when he spoke at the Army Day rally in the early years of the founding of New China.

Artistic Design Features

The set adopts a fine engraving process, with rigorous and solid lines, rich layers of light and shade, and delicate and expressive engraving. The dark background sets off the figures and highlights the weighty and solemn temperament of the founding father. The first stamp was voted the Best Engraved Stamp of 1986 and is a classic of New China's engraved figure stamps.