Scott No: -
Serial number: 2021-18
Values in set: 4
Date of issue: September 7th, 2021
Denomination: 480 fen
Designer: Zhang Guizhi
Size of stamps: 40 * 30 mm
Perforation: 13
Sheet composition:
16 for Sheet I (Value 1, 2 in Sheet 1; Value 3, 4 in Sheet 2);
8 for Sheet II (2 Sets)
Size of sheet:
220 * 160 mm for Sheet I;
140 * 154 mm for Sheet II
Printing process: Offset + Engraving
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

China Post is scheduled to issue a set of 4 special stamps themed "Hibiscus mutabilis" on September 7, 2021. The stamps are titled respectively Hibiscus mutabilis, Golden Autumn Red, Double-Petaled White and Drunken Hibiscus. The total face value of the full set is 4.80 yuan. The planned circulation is 6.9 million sets of stamps and 900,000 sheets of Layout 2.

Hibiscus mutabilis, also known as "cotton rose", "drunken hibiscus" or "triple-drunk hibiscus", belongs to the Malvaceae family and the genus Hibiscus. It is a deciduous shrub or small tree, originally native to the Yellow River Basin, East China and South China of China. It has two varieties: single-petaled and double-petaled. Its flowers are beautiful and large, blooming in the morning and withering in the evening. Due to the pigments in the flowers that change with temperature and acid-base concentration, the flowers are pure white or light red when they first bloom in the early morning, turn pink in the afternoon, and become dark red when they are about to close in the evening—hence the name "triple-drunk hibiscus". Both its flowers and leaves can be used as medicine, with effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, reducing swelling and draining pus, and cooling blood to stop bleeding.

This set of stamps depicts Hibiscus mutabilis, Golden Autumn Red, Double-Petaled White and Drunken Hibiscus. It adopts the traditional Chinese meticulous painting technique, featuring concise and vivid brushwork, rich layered rendering, and appropriate color shades. The painted petals have clear folds, the leaves are moist and concise, and the combination of flowers and leaves has proper density and corresponding up-and-down postures. The background of the picture uses meticulous line drawing to assist in showing the stem shape of Hibiscus mutabilis, further enriching the picture layers.

This set of stamps was designed by Zhang Guizheng, a member of the Chinese Artists Association, and printed by Beijing Stamp Factory Co., Ltd. using the offset engraving process. The stamp printing gives full play to the characteristics of engraving printing, such as thick ink and strong three-dimensional sense, focusing on showing the leaf veins and edge parts of the flowers, resulting in a thick texture and strong contrast. The colorless white fluorescent effect under black light echoes the engraved parts of the stamps, further highlighting the elegance of the flowers.