Scott No: 917-918
Serial number: C119
Values in set: 2
Date of issue: June 27, 1966
Denomination: 30 fen
Designer: Shao Bolin
Size of stamps: 36.5*26mm
Perforation: 11
Sheet composition: 50(5*10)
Printing process: Photogravure
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

C119 "Emergency Meeting of Afro-Asian Writers" commemorative stamps were issued on June 27, 1966. The set consists of 2 stamps, printed by photogravure, designed by Shao Bolin, and printed by the Beijing Stamp Factory. Stamp size 36.5 mm × 26 mm, perforation gauge 11, 50 stamps per sheet. The face values are 8 fen and 22 fen, with a total face value of 0.30 yuan for the set; circulations: 6 million copies for the 8-fen stamp and 1 million copies for the 22-fen stamp.

Theme of the Set

The Emergency Meeting of Afro-Asian Writers was held in Beijing from June 27 to July 9, 1966, with representatives from more than fifty countries and regions in Asia and Africa and from international organizations attending. The purpose of the meeting was to unite Afro-Asian writers, use literature as a weapon, support the Vietnamese people's struggle against US aggression and for national salvation, voice support for the national liberation movements of Asian and African countries, and oppose imperialist aggression. The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications issued this commemorative set on the opening day of the meeting, using the dual imagery of literature and combat to express the theme of Afro-Asian writers joining hands and using their pens as blades to support the just cause of national independence. This set is also an important international-themed stamp set from the late period of the old Ji-te stamps, very close to the time when Ji-te stamps ceased issuance.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Wind and Thunder

The main subject of the design is a portion of the "Wind and Thunder" sculpture: two warriors rising in struggle, one charging forward with a gun and the other following closely, full of a sense of power. The background is a pure bright red, and the words "Emergency Meeting of Afro-Asian Writers 1966 · Beijing" are printed at the top of the stamp. The sculpture imagery symbolizes the revolutionary wind and thunder of the Asian and African peoples fearing no power and rising in struggle, implying that writers inspire the people with literary works to devote themselves to the struggle against aggression and for national liberation.

Badge of the Emergency Meeting of Afro-Asian Writers

The design takes the exclusive badge of this meeting as its main subject. An open book is centered, with the meeting's name and year printed on its pages, and above the book is a torch radiating light. The book represents writers, literature, and thought, and the torch symbolizes revolutionary ideals and light, implying that the literary strength of Asia and Africa conveys the voice of justice and pushes the cause of national liberation forward. It is a condensed visual symbol of the spirit of the meeting.

Artistic Design Features

The two stamps share a unified format, with simple and dignified compositions; the large area of bright red background is a typical era color of the 1960s. One design focuses on the combat sculpture, leaning toward strength and resistance; the other uses the meeting badge, leaning toward culture and ideals—one dynamic and one static, paired together, with clear narrative layers. The photogravure printing has intense, weighty colors, and the red is saturated and steady.