Scott No: 3248
Serial number: 2002-26
Values in set: 2
Denomination: 1.60 yuan
Date of issue: 20th Nov. 2002
Designer: Kim Dong Seong (South Korea) and Lou Wei
Size of stamps: 40*30 mm
Perforation: 11.5
Sheet composition: 12
Printing process: gravure
Printer: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing House

The stamp set is cataloged as 2002-26, titled Martial Arts and Taekwondo. It was issued on November 28, 2002. The set consists of two stamps in a photogravure edition printed by Beijing Stamp Printing Works. The designer is Kim Dong-heon of South Korea. The total face value is 1.6 yuan. Each stamp measures 30×40 mm, with a perforation gauge of 13 degrees. Each sheet contains 20 stamps, printed in a horizontal continuous pair.

This stamp set is a joint issue between China Post and Korea Post. It features representative traditional sports from both countries—Chinese martial arts (wushu) and Korean taekwondo—using body movements as the visual medium to reflect the shared roots of Eastern martial arts culture and enhance sports cultural exchange between the two countries.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Martial Arts (Wushu)

Wushu is a treasure of traditional Chinese sport, with a long history. It combines self-defense, physical fitness, and character cultivation, integrating offensive and defensive techniques with traditional philosophical thought. The stamp features the classic wushu movement of a flying kick, with an expansive, powerful posture and a vigorous, dashing action. Wushu has many styles and emphasizes the unity of internal and external, and the interplay of movement and stillness. Passed down for thousands of years, it is an important part of traditional Chinese culture.

Taekwondo

Taekwondo is a representative traditional martial art of South Korea, known for its kicking techniques and emphasizing etiquette, willpower training, and physical and mental cultivation. The stamp features the iconic taekwondo movement of a jumping kick, with a crisp and clean posture. Taekwondo values "beginning with courtesy and ending with courtesy," placing moral cultivation first. It is widely spread around the world and is a renowned Eastern martial art.

Artistic and Design Features

The stamps use the photogravure process. The lines are simple and flowing, and the colors are clean and bright, highlighting the sense of power in the figures' movements. The two stamps are printed in a horizontal continuous pair, with the left and right images echoing each other, presenting the jumping movements of the two Eastern martial arts side by side. The background is simple with negative space, focusing on the figures' postures and martial arts movements without adding complex scenes. Through body movements, the stamp set showcases the charm of these two Eastern martial arts and reflects the exchange and mutual learning between the traditional sports cultures of the two countries.