Scott No: -
Serial number: 2007-25
Values in set: 2
Date of issue: November 22, 2007
Denomination: 240 fen
Designer: Xia Jingqiu
Size of stamps: 50 * 30 mm
Perforation: 13
Sheet composition: 12
Printing process: Offset
Printing House: Liaoning Province Shengyang Postage Stamp Printing Works

This stamp set was officially issued on November 22, 2007, as a joint issue between the postal services of China and Mexico to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. It consists of two stamps, each with a face value of 1.20 yuan, for a total face value of 2.40 yuan. The stamps were jointly designed by Xia Jingqiu and Arriega Héctor Tenorio (Mexico), with photography of Mount Gongga by Wang Jianjun, Zhao Lei serving as the responsible editor, and printed by Shenyang Post and Telecommunications Printing Factory in Liaoning Province using offset printing.

Mount Gongga is known as the "King of the Sichuan Mountains" and represents the highest peak on the eastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Popocatépetl (El Popo) is an iconic sacred volcano in Mexico. The two postal services selected these symbolic mountain peaks from their respective countries to showcase the majestic mountain scenery on stamps, commemorating the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Mexico and promoting cultural and natural exchange between the two nations.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Mount Gongga

Mount Gongga is located in Garzê, Sichuan, with its main peak rising to 7,556 meters, making it the highest peak in the Hengduan Mountains. The stamp depicts the majestic snow-capped peak, with dazzling white snow on the summit and lush green meadows and flowers at the foot, set against a clear blue sky. The image captures the grandeur and sacredness of the snow-capped mountains of western Sichuan.

Popocatépetl (El Popo)

Popocatépetl is located near Mexico City, with an elevation of 5,452 meters. It is an active volcano and has been revered as a sacred mountain since ancient times. The stamp presents the volcano's perfectly symmetrical cone shape, with wisps of smoke rising from the summit, snow covering the peak, and lush forests at the base, showcasing the unique and spectacular landscape of this American volcano.

Artistic and Design Features

The two horizontal stamps share a unified design style, using bright and clear realistic landscape photography, with elegant gold-toned borders. One stamp features an Eastern snow-capped mountain, while the other features a Latin American volcano, both set against a shared blue sky backdrop, creating a harmonious and symmetrical composition. The offset printing delivers clean and vivid colors, accurately reproducing the textures of alpine snow, grass, and volcanic smoke, embodying the complementary design aesthetic of joint stamp issues.

This stamp set is a joint issue on the theme of mountain landscapes, available in stamp set and large sheet formats. Collectors often include it in their international joint issue collections or world-famous mountain thematic collections, making it a distinctive addition to geographical landscape-themed modern stamp collections.