Scott No: 930-935
Serial number: C123
Values in set: 6
Date of issue: March 25, 1967
Denomination: 448 fen
Designer: Sun Chuanzhe
Size of stamps: 26.5*36mm
Perforation: 11.5*11
Sheet composition: 50(10*5)
Printing process: Photogravure
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

Issued on 25 March 1967, the set contains six stamps, printed in photogravure, designed by Sun Chuanzhe and produced by Beijing Stamp Factory. Stamp size: 26.5mm × 36mm; perforation: 11.5 × 11; sheet composition: 50 stamps (10 × 5). Each stamp bears a face value of 8 fen; the total print run for the complete set is 6 million.

Main Theme of the Stamp

On 15 March 1966, while carrying out a training mission on the outskirts of Jiamusi, Liu Yingjun, a soldier of the PLA, saw a harnessed horse take fright and charge toward children beside the road. At this critical moment, he threw all his strength to bring the runaway horse down. The six children were saved, yet Liu Yingjun was crushed by the gun carriage and later died of his injuries at the age of only twenty-one. His unit posthumously awarded him a First-Class Merit Citation and admitted him into the Party. A nationwide campaign to learn from him soon followed. Issued on the first anniversary of the martyr’s death, this six-stamp set traces Liu Yingjun’s spiritual growth and heroic deeds. It extols his noble spirit of faithfulness to his beliefs and sacrificing himself for the people, calling on young people across the country to follow the hero’s example.

Stamp Designs and Historical Context

Portrait of Comrade Liu Yingjun

This piece shows a formal portrait of Liu Yingjun in padded military uniform, wearing a fur cap adorned with a five-pointed star. His expression is firm and plain, framed by a red border that creates a solemn, reverent mood. Opening the series, this stamp establishes the overall image of the hero.

Strive to Study Mao Zedong Thought

Liu Yingjun holds high the Selected Works of Mao Zedong in an upright, spirited pose. The design depicts his persistent theoretical study and conscious effort to equip himself with revolutionary ideology, a reflection of his intellectual development.

Resolutely Implement Mao Zedong Thought

Liu Yingjun holds the horse reins in one hand while handing over a written pledge with the other. The scene embodies his commitment to translate ideology into action, vowing to live out revolutionary convictions within company duties and daily training.

Actively Disseminate Mao Zedong Thought

The illustration captures Liu Yingjun at his desk preparing slides telling Lei Feng’s story. Behind him on the wall hangs Mao Zedong’s inscription: “Learn from Comrade Lei Feng.” Using slides as an intuitive medium, he spread the hero’s story and revolutionary ideas among his fellow soldiers and ordinary people.

Bravely Defend Mao Zedong Thought

Liu Yingjun stands straight with a resolute look while delivering a speech. This stamp symbolises his resolve to stand firm and speak out in ideological struggles, safeguarding revolutionary convictions.

To Die for the Interests of the People Is Heavier Than Mount Tai

The design freezes the dramatic moment when he stops the runaway horse. The galloping steed and tilting gun carriage fill the frame as Liu Yingjun strains every muscle to bring the horse down and shield the children ahead. The title is quoted from Serve the People, articulating the value of his sacrifice and forming the climax of the whole set.

Artistic Features of the Design

The whole set adopts a unified vertical layout, arranged in progressive sequence: portrait, study, practice, propagation, defence, and finally the heroic sacrifice, forming a complete biographical narrative arc. The painting style is typical of realist propaganda art of the 1960s, with solid, simple modelling dominated by red tones, bearing striking marks of the era. This is an important hero-themed set among the later old C and S series stamps, released shortly before the suspension of commemorative and special stamp issues, securing it a distinctive place among China’s red-figure stamps.