International collectors' expo gathers enthusiasts from around the world

The forthcoming 2016 Asian International Stamp Exhibition in Nanning will showcase Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region's culture, history and lifestyle, offering a platform to enhance people-to-people exchanges, said experts and officials.

The exhibition will be held from Friday to Tuesday. Organizations and individual stamp enthusiasts, known as philatelists, from 31 member countries and regions of the Federation of Inter-Asia Philately will display more than 1,300 sets of stamps during the event, according to Ma Junsheng, chief of the State Post Bureau, one of the organizers of the show.

He said the unique characteristics of the Guangxi region will be displayed at the event. "The local culture, life and landscapes will be showcased at the exhibition in the forms of the mascot, logo and stamps on display."

The mascot of the event is the "Silk Ball Baby". In Guangxi, the silk ball, made of silk embroidery pieces, is popular among the Zhuang and other ethnic groups, who use it for such auspicious occasions as courtship, weddings and receiving honorable guests.

Two commemorative stamps, with one featuring a Zhuang embroidery piece and another featuring a silk ball, will be issued for the exhibition.

In addition, according to Ma, a definitive stamp sheet will be issued, featuring a bronze phoenix lantern, which is a Han Dynasty (206 BC-220) bronze ware discovered in the region and now exhibited at the Guangxi Museum. The bronze piece is evidence of the high level of Guangxi's civilization some 2,000 years ago as an important starting point of the ancient Maritime Silk Road.

Ma noted that one of the highlights of the stamp exhibition is the Nanning Day event on Saturday, where a number of stamps featuring the culture and landscape of Guangxi and the region's capital city of Nanning will be displayed.

He added that the event will also be a platform to showcase Chinese culture. Ma said a special event featuring the 12 Chinese zodiac signs - including an exhibition of stamps carrying the 12 animals and symposiums on related cultures - will be staged on Monday.

Zhou Hongbo, mayor of Nanning, said he expects the event to enhance the cultural exchanges between Guangxi, Nanning and the world, displaying the region's new social and economic developments.

He said the stamp exhibition will open a window for people from the world to learn more about Guangxi and Nanning.

"We hope our exhibits can be vivid narrators, telling stories about the cultures, traditions, customs and local aesthetic tastes of Guangxi and Nanning," Zhou said.

He said he also hopes the event can offer an opportunity for exchange between local and overseas philatelists.

The mayor added that he expects the exhibition to create a platform to promote Nanning's ethnic culture to the world and further facilitate the cultural cooperation between the city and the world.

Huang Dou, chairman of the Guangxi Philatelic Federation, said the forthcoming event will give people better understanding of the cultures relating to stamps in the new information era.

He said philately is a practice that is developing with the modern postal industry, and that the industry is now undergoing a fundamental change amid the rapid development of information technologies.

"As traditional mail is being replaced by email and new methods of delivery, we are concerned about the future of postage stamps and philately," Huang said.

"Instead of its commercial value as evidence of payment, the postage stamp is still appealing to us as a cultural token," Huang said.

He said collecting stamps and communicating with philatelists around the world with letters are still among the most effective ways for him to learn about the world and to make friends.

"I have kept correspondence with more than 70 philatelists in various countries, which helps me to understand different cultures," Huang said.

Su Bing, a veteran philatelist in Nanning, called the stamps a "mini encyclopedia", as they help people to better know the world.

"Stamp themes cover everything: nature, history and all kinds of social and cultural aspects," Su said, adding that stamps present him with a colorful world and help to enrich his spiritual life.

He said that he began collecting stamps in 1977 when he was 10 years old, and that his vision has been constantly broadened, as his social circle was expanded from Nanning to Guangxi, to China and on to the rest of world.

"I have taken part in various philatelic organizations and made many friends with the same interest," Huang said.

"In times when mobile phones and email are popular, receiving a letter carrying a stamp is always a surprise to me. A review of the past-day letters and stamps always awakens the best memories," he said.

zhaoshijun@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 12/01/2016 page12)