Scott No: -
Serial number: 2016-5
Values in set: 3
Date of issue: April 2, 2016
Denomination: 390 fen
Designer: Wang Huming
Size of stamps: 47 * 35 mm for Value 1, 3; 62 * 35 mm for Value 2
Perforation: 13 * 13.5
Sheet composition: 15 (5 sets)
Sheet Size: 187 * 218 mm
Size of S/S: 160 * 66 mm
Size of S/S stamp: 134 * 34 mm
Perforation of S/S: 13.5
Printing process: Photogravure
Printing House: Beijing Stamp Printing Works

China Post scheduled the issuance of a set of Special Stamps themed "Painting of the Lofty and Unconventional" and one souvenir sheet on April 2, 2016. The stamp set consists of 3 stamps.

Painting of the Lofty and Unconventional, a renowned surviving masterpiece of ancient Chinese painting, is a fragment of Painting of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove by Sun Wei, a painter of the late Tang Dynasty. Measuring 45.2 centimeters in height and 168.7 centimeters in width, it is one of the rare surviving figure paintings from the Tang Dynasty. The original scroll depicted the seven scholar-recluses of the Wei and Jin dynasties, while only four of them remain in this fragment. From right to left, they are Shan Tao, portrayed as open and unrestrained; Wang Rong, holding an ruyi (a traditional Chinese scepter symbolizing good fortune); Liu Ling, cupping a wine goblet and looking back; and Ruan Ji, waving a zhuhu (a fly-whisk made of deer tail hair, an emblem of scholars in ancient times). The depictions of the other three sages—Ji Kang, Xiang Xiu and Ruan Xian—were already lost by the Northern Song Dynasty. In the scroll, the four sages are seated on floral carpets, each with distinct postures and expressions. Four boy attendants stand beside them, accompanied by various utensils, and the personality traits of the figures are portrayed in an exquisitely lifelike manner. Painting of the Lofty and Unconventional is a color painting on silk with sophisticated artistic techniques: its lines are smooth and mellow, the figure modeling is delicate and vivid, and the color scheme is bright yet elegant. At the beginning of the scroll, there is an inscription in slender gold calligraphy by Emperor Huizong of Song that reads "Sun Wei's Painting of the Lofty and Unconventional". The painting is now housed in the Shanghai Museum.

In accordance with the composition of the original artwork, the 3 stamps adopt different specifications, which cleverly divide the painting to highlight the main figures. The border decoration of the souvenir sheet is simple and elegant, and the main image fully reproduces the charm of the ancient painting. The stamp set and the souvenir sheet were designed by Wang Huming and Li Qun respectively, and printed by the Beijing Stamp Printing House using the gravure printing technique. This is another fine work in the series of ancient Chinese painting-themed stamps issued by China Post.