Scott No: 1510
Serial number: J46
Values in set: 1
Date of issue: October 1, 1979
Denomination: 8 fen
Designer: Wan Weisheng
Size of stamps: 40*54mm
Perforation: 11
Sheet composition: 28(7*4)
Printing process: Photogravure
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

J46 "The 30th Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China (Series III)" commemorative stamp was issued on October 1, 1979. The set consists of 1 stamp, printed by photogravure combined with engraving, designed by Wan Weisheng, and printed by the Beijing Stamp Factory. Stamp size 40 mm × 54 mm, perforation gauge 11, 28 stamps per sheet. This group is the third series for the 30th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, taking the national anthem as its theme.

Theme of the Set

1979 marked the 30th anniversary of the founding of New China. Following the national flag and national emblem, this group selects the national anthem as its subject. The national anthem is a symbol of the state and carries the national spirit. This stamp uses the lyrics and musical score of the 1978 revised version of the national anthem, and it is the only stamp in New China that uses this version of the national anthem as its design, bearing witness to a special historical stage and carrying the patriotic feelings of the people of the whole country striving together with one heart to build the motherland.

Stamp Design and Historical Background

National Anthem

In the upper left corner of the design is the five-star red flag, and at the top of the stamp are marked "30th Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China 1949–1979." The main subject is the staff notation and complete lyrics of the national anthem of the People's Republic of China. The musical score's lines are neat and clear, and the layout is dignified and plain, integrating the national flag and the national anthem score into one and embodying the solemnity of national symbols.

Artistic Design Features

The stamp is in a vertical composition, with a simple, elegant layout and no superfluous decoration, with the focus concentrated on the national flag and the musical score. It adopts the photogravure-plus-engraving process: the engraved lines ensure the score and text are clear and neat, and the photogravure sets off a soft background color. The layout is rigorous and orderly, solemn and dignified, and together with the previous two groups on the national flag and national emblem it forms a complete sequence on the theme of national symbols. It has unique historical-document value among the National Day series stamps.