Scott No: 2030-31
Serial number: J126
Values in set: 2
Date of issue: March 22, 1986
Denomination: 28 fen
Designers: Yang Lizhou, Wang Yingchun
Engraver: Sun Hongnian, Hu Zhengyuan
Size of stamps: 40*30mm
Perforation: 11*11.5
Sheet composition: 50(5*10)
Printing process: Engraving and photogravure
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

J126 "90th Anniversary of the Birth of Comrade He Long" commemorative stamps were issued on March 22, 1986. The set consists of 2 stamps, printed by photogravure combined with engraving, with a stamp size of 40 × 30 mm, perforation gauge 11.5, and 50 stamps per sheet (5 × 10). Designed by Yang Lizhou and Wang Yingchun, engraved by Hu Zhenyuan and Sun Hongnian, and printed by the Beijing Stamp Factory.

Theme of the Set

He Long was a great proletarian revolutionary and military strategist, a founding marshal, the principal leader of the Nanchang Uprising, the founder of the Jin-Sui anti-Japanese base area, and after the founding of New China the leader in charge of sports undertakings. This set selects two representative images, linking together his years of military campaigns and his life stage after the founding of the country, honoring his lifelong courage, uprightness, and open-mindedness, and the immortal achievements he rendered for the people's army, national liberation, and national construction.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Portrait of Comrade He Long

The image is a half-length portrait of He Long in marshal's uniform, with a composed and hearty expression. In 1955 He Long was conferred the rank of marshal; he was bold and generous in temperament and was one of the founders of the people's army.

He Long on the Battlefield

The image shows He Long on horseback during the Red Army period, holding binoculars, with gun smoke filling the background. In his early years he rose up in revolution with two kitchen knives, and during the Long March and the War of Resistance he galloped across the battlefield and commanded operations, fully displaying the bold spirit of a battlefield commander.

Artistic Design Features

The set adopts realistic portrait painting combined with the photogravure-plus-engraving process, with solid and weighty engraved lines. One stamp is a dignified static portrait, the other dynamic with a strong battlefield atmosphere. The tones are plain and deep, the characterization of the figures is vivid, and through the solemnity shines He Long's distinctive bold and generous temperament.