Australia Post celebrates the Year of the Snake
To celebrate the Year of the Snake, Australia Post released a Lunar New Year stamp issue featuring the Chinese character for the snake, shown in the $1.80 stamp, and its pictorial representation, shown in the 60c stamp.
The Snake is the sixth sign in the Chinese zodiac and symbolizes wisdom, caution and romance. The Year of the Snake begins on 10 February 2013.
Famous people born in the Year of the Snake include Sir Sidney Nolan, Audrey Hepburn, Bob Hawke, June Bronhill, Liz Hurley and Pierce Brosnan. According to Chinese Astrology they are likely to be or have been intelligent, graceful, independent, analytical and charming.
Zodiac 2013 stamp from Thailand
Thai Post has issued a stamp to celebrate the Year of the Snake. The Snake is one of the 12-year cycles of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac and related to the Chinese calendar, as well as in related East Asian zodiacal or calendrical systems.
2013 Year of the Snake stamps from New Zealand
The snake is the sixth animal in the Chinese lunar calendar, and those born in the Year of the Snake are thought to be elegant, insightful, motivated and highly intellectual. According to ancient Chinese folklore, snakes are deities in disguise, and a snake entering a house brings good fortune for all who live there.
The 2013 Year of the Snake stamp issue by New Zealand Post reflects different aspects of Chinese tradition and culture. The four stamps also celebrate New Zealand's growing Chinese community.
The stamps in this issue are as follows:
70c – Chinese Calligraphic Snake. The striking Chinese 'snake' character on this stamp was created by Zhao Meng-fu, a scholar, painter and calligrapher from the Yuan Dynasty (1254-1322 AD).
$1.40 – Paper-cut Greeting Snake. The greeting snake paper-cut on this stamp features images of the silver fern (Cyathea dealbata) and the pomegranate - a Chinese symbol of luck, fertility, wealth and long life.
$1.90 – Koru-Snake Lantern. New Zealand's links with China are celebrated in this lantern design. The unfurling fern represents new life, growth and strength, while the rounded lantern symbolizes wholeness and harmony. The snake is decorated with the peony, which is widely regarded as China's national flower.
$2.40 – Queenstown and Red lanterns. The koru-snake lantern is taken to new heights, soaring on the Skyline Gondola above Queenstown and Lake Wakatipu. This area is also home to the Winter Festival, and in 2012 the Festival included a lantern parade, with an array of colourful lanterns and a Chinese dragon lighting up the streets.
Lunar Year of the Snake stamps from Macao
There are two kinds of theories about the attributes of the Five Elements in each year: one saying is dependent on the "Heavenly Stems" while the other is based on the sound retainers of the Five Elements, which are calculated by "Heavenly Stems" and "Earthly Branches".
The Macao Post adopted the "Heavenly Stems" calculation method to figure out the nature of the "Five Elements" in the sixth issue of the third series of Chinese Zodiac stamps "Lunar Year of the Snake". According to the "Five Elements", there are five different natures of snake: "Water Snake", "Metal Snake", "Earth Snake", "Fire Snake" and "Wood Snake". This year, the snake’s nature from the "Five Elements" is "Water Snake", so it becomes the main character of the five stamps.
Source : International Stamp News
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