Scott No: -
Serial number: 2008-11
Values in set: 2
Date of issue: April 16, 2008
Denomination: 240 fen
Designer: Ma Gang
Size of stamps: 60 * 30 mm
Perforation: 12.5 * 13
Sheet composition: 10 ( 5 sets )
Size of Sheet: 170 * 190 mm
Size of Miniature Sheet: 170 * 70 mm
Printing process: Offset
Printing House: Shenyang Posts and Telecommunications Printing House, Liaoning Province

On April 16, 2008, the special stamp "Qiandao Lake" (catalog number 2008-11) was officially issued. The set consists of two stamps, each with a face value of 1.20 yuan, for a total face value of 2.40 yuan, with a souvenir sheet (priced at 3.60 yuan) issued concurrently. The stamps were designed by Ma Gang and printed by Shenyang Post and Telecommunications Printing Factory in Liaoning Province using offset printing.

Qiandao Lake, located in Chun'an, Zhejiang, is a large artificial lake formed by the impoundment of the Xin'an River Hydroelectric Dam in 1959. With over a thousand islands and excellent water quality, it is known as "the most beautiful water under heaven" and is a national scenic area and forest park. The stamps, in a horizontal two-stamp format, feature two classic landscapes of the lake, presenting the interlacing islands and waters and the beautiful Jiangnan scenery. They not only showcase the lake's unique natural ecology but also document the achievements of the Xin'an River water conservancy project, promote ecological conservation, and highlight the scenic beauty of this important water source in the Yangtze River Delta.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background:

A Thousand Islands in Clear Waters

Image: A wide view of the lake with boats navigating the blue waters, islands scattered at various distances, distant mountains shrouded in light mist, and birds dotting the sky.
Significance: This stamp focuses on the expansive, misty waters of Qiandao Lake, presenting the open and harmonious integration of waterways and mountains.

Jade Plate Holding Green Jade

Image: A bird's-eye view from Meifeng Peak, showing islands scattered like emeralds on the lake's surface, surrounded by lush forests.
Significance: The stamp uses the metaphor of a jade plate and green jade to highlight the island-dotted landscape, presenting the lake's excellent vegetation and unique island geography.

Souvenir Sheet – Scenery of Qiandao Lake

Image: The two stamps are arranged horizontally without borders, forming a continuous landscape scroll, with lake and mountain elements on the border.
Significance: The souvenir sheet, with its seamless integration of the two stamps, presents a complete panoramic view of Qiandao Lake, making it the most visually appealing format of this set.

Artistic and Design Features:

The set features a uniform horizontal format, with the two stamps designed to connect and form a continuous landscape scroll—the highlight of this set. The painting draws on the scattered perspective of traditional Chinese landscape painting, using fresh, elegant tones of blue-green and emerald that complement the lake and forest environment. The realistic painting style faithfully reproduces the lake's topography, with clear spatial depth. The borderless design minimizes visual interruption, enhancing the sense of continuous scenery. Shaped perforations are used uniformly, improving anti-counterfeiting and identification.

This stamp set is a thematic issue on the scenery of a southern lake, with a distinctive two-stamp continuous format and souvenir sheet. It is often collected together with other lake scenery stamps, such as West Lake, Tai Lake, and Dongting Lake, making it an important item for thematic collections on natural scenery and water conservancy projects.