Scott No: 2897-99
Serial number: 1998-21
Values in set: 3
Date of issue: September 23, 1998
Designers: Yan Bingwu; Guo Chenghui
Size of stamp: 50*30mm
Perforation: 12
Sheet composition: 40
Printing process: offset

The special stamp set Helan Mountains Rock Art, catalog number 1998-21, was issued on September 23, 1998. It consists of three stamps, produced using offset printing. The stamps measure 50×30 mm, with a perforation gauge of 12 degrees. Each sheet contains 40 stamps. The stamps were designed by Yan Bingwu and Guo Chenghui and printed by Henan Post and Telecommunications Printing Factory.

This stamp set was issued on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. Helan Mountains rock art is distributed on the cliff faces of the eastern foothills of the Helan Mountains in Ningxia. It is a stone carving legacy created by northern nomadic peoples from ancient times to the Western Xia period, dating back thousands of years. The rock art records scenes of ancestors' sacrifices, hunting, and herding, and includes images of animals, human faces, and symbols. It is precious physical historical material for studying the ancient nomadic civilization of northern China. The stamps feature three representative rock art relics, showcasing the primitive and simple stone carving art and tracing the ancient civilizational imprints of the northwestern land.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Human Face

The image features the famous Sun God human-face rock art at Helankou. It has a round face, with multiple rays of light radiating from the eyes, and intricate and mysterious patterns. Such human-face images are mostly related to ancient magic and deity worship, and are the most representative subject of Helan Mountains rock art, collectively reflecting the primitive worship of ancient ancestors.

Archery and Hunting

The design presents a hunting scene of ancient nomads. A hunter holds a bow and arrow, aiming at a running beast, with simple and rough lines. The image recreates the production activities of nomadic peoples thousands of years ago, reproducing the life scene of ancestors relying on hunting for livelihood and vividly recording the survival methods of the ancestors of the northern grasslands.

Bull

The main subject is a giant bull rock art. The bull's body is majestic and robust, with simple and powerful lines, and a form full of strength. This rock art is located in the northern area of the Helan Mountains. It is a classic animal subject of Helan Mountains rock art, reflecting the nomadic people's emphasis on livestock and highlighting the simple and vigorous artistic expressiveness of ancient stone carvings.

Artistic and Design Features

The stamps retain the rough texture background of the rock. The carved patterns of the rock art are presented in yellowish-brown lines, faithfully reproducing the texture of the carved images on the original stone. The three stamps correspond to the three major themes of sacrifice, production, and animals. The compositions are simple and archaic, without extraneous embellishment, preserving the rough and minimalist artistic characteristics of the original rock art to the greatest extent. The entire set uses simple and substantial visual language to recreate the civilizational scroll left by ancient ancestors on the rocks.