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Damo (B)
See previous card 20307963 for a complete explanation. This one, not the same, is also unused. Grade: 1
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An Ancient Rare Tree
This unusual unused postcard hides all its secrets in plain sight. To start, the card measures 4″ x 7-1/4″. Our header is the card’s caption, on front and reverse. But there’s more, in faint letters, and we will put it all here: “The Latin name of this tree is Morus cathayana Hemsl. It lives on Guanxin Slope, 1200 meters above sea level, and has witnessed a history of over 700 years. Greetings from Mt. Emei, a World Heritage site.” This is an official China Post card and had an uncancelled stamp affixed at point of origin. All we can suggest is that the Chinese Government should not tell anyone exactly where the tree is. Grade: 1
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Ligou Garden
Elements of previous card 20307965 are the same here: unused, stamped, official, Mt. Emei, Greetings, and World Heritage — and measuring 4″ x 7-1/4″. In this case, as the old saying goes, the card’s caption takes the cake: “Ligou Garden, or the Dirt-free Garden, sits among the trees in Fuhu Temple (“Tiger Taming Temple”). Nearly no dead leaf would ever fall on the roofs of the garden because of its unique architectural designs. This is considered a wonder in the world history of architecture.” Either that, or a clean-up squad appears in the middle of the night to exact its own wonders. Grade: 1
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Hengli (set of 12)
Published by China Post, and with pre-printed colour postage, the 12 unused cards in this 2009 set are captioned entirely in Chinese. Our scan shows the front cardboard cover, the front of one card, and the back of another. Grade: 1
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Nan Chang (set of 10)
These 10 unused cards — artwork, not photographs — come in a cardboard cover whose front you see in our scan. (That design is also on one of the postcards.) Captioned in Chinese only, so your Google Translate will get a workout. Grade: 1
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50th Anniversary of China/Spain Diplomatic Relations (Maximum Cards) (set of 2)
Issued by China Post as Maximum Card set MC-134, these two cards are distinctly Chinese notwithstanding the Spanish stamp on one of them. Unused. Grade: 1
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Shenzhen Postal Bureau
A nice enough scene on this 4″ x 7-1/4″ lottery card from China Post in Shenzhen in 2012, but there’s no English caption, and what Chinese there is does not identify the location. Unused, with pre-printed postage and individual lottery number, and we have several of these. It is too late to redeem your winnings, though. Grades: 1
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Shenzhen (pack of 30+)
As you might know, Shenzhen transforms itself almost by the minute. This jumbo pack of 30 postcards, 30 “share” cards and what might be 460 small stickers was sourced in late 2023 and is still in its original cellowrap, so we don’t know what appears on the cards. However we do know the reverse of the pack has a long description — Chinese only — telling of many of Shenzhen’s visual and gustatory attractions. If you are looking for one comprehensive item showing Shenzhen up to that date, this would probably be it. The scan of the front of the pack should give you some idea. Grade: 1
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Shen Zhen City (Set of 10)
An unused set of 10 cards — detailed artwork, not photographs — showing various scenes around the city. The set has a cardboard cover, which itself has thumbnail shots of each card. Grade: 1
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The Great Wall at Badaling
When it’s a night view like this, you don’t see the many thousands of people and vendors surrounding the area. We’ve already commented that, for a few renminbi more, it’s much better to go to the Mutianyu entrance further north. This postcard was not postally used but has a message covering the reverse. Grade: 4
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50th Anniversary of China-Spain Diplomatic Relations (Maximum Cards) (set of 2)
Issued as set MC-134 by China Philatelic in 2023, both cards feature flamingos but one is stamped and postmarked as China, while the other, naturally, represents Spain. Grade: 1
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National Archaeological Site Park (Maximum Cards) (set of 4)
Here is China National Philatelic’s 2023 set MC-137 of four maximum cards showing (and identifying in Chinese) various archaeological artifacts. Our scan shows the front of the cardboard cover at the lower right, and three of the four cards. Grade: 1
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Innovation in Science and Technology (IV) (Maximum Cards) (Set of 5)
The cardboard cover for this set of five maximum cards appears in the top right of our scan, along with most of three of those five cards. It’s China National Philatelic set MC-138 from 2023, and the cards show experimental rice, the Mars Rover, a cosmic ray observatory, a satellite, and … artificial starch. Definitely an outer-space theme. Grade: 1
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23rd Olympic Games, Weightlifting in 52kg Class
You might refer back to our entry 20307940 for a similar card (different sport) but otherwise identical description, which we’ll repeat here: Maybe lesser-known among Olympics postcards, but a simple example issued by the Chinese Government “In commemoration of gold medals won by China at the 23rd Olympic Games”. Postmarked August 1984, with pre-printed coloured postage. The reverse is blank. Grade: 1
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Shenzhen City (5 sets of 10 cards each)
We debated the best way to post these, and settled on what you see here. Five sets of cards show aspects of Shenzhen. Each set has its own theme: Shenzhen Parkscapes, Shenzhen Heritages, Shenzhen Kaleidoscope, Shenzhen Architectures, and Shenzhen Azure. Each set comes in a plastic container (see lower right of our scan) encircled by a paper wrap with appropriate title. The rest of the scan shows typical front and reverse of one of the cards in each set. They are still in their original cello-wrap. Sets may date from about 2012 and would — we think — be definitive of the city at the time. We decided not to break up this “set of sets” because it deserves to stay together, but we have not opened all the wrappers to verify everything — they came direct from a China Post unit. So if you are interested, you either accept them as they are or we can open them for you to verify each has its own 10 cards. In the event, total cost is for all five sets; everything is Grade: 1
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Tibet, Lancet, Linzhi and Peach Blossom Collection
If you Google “Linzhi” you will learn that Linzhi (Ganoderma lucidum) is a medicinal mushroom. Because this remarkable set of 12 cards (our scan shows the front cardboard cover) has no trace of mushrooms in it, we know Google actually wanted to say “Nyingchi”, also known as Linzhi or Nyingtri, a prefecture-level city in southeastern Tibet Autonomous Region. The administrative seat of Nyingchi is Bayi District. First, the cards: they come from the Tibet Linzhi Regional Tourist Bureau. All card captioning is in Chinese. They show the range of spectacular mountain peaks, a sunset in Namjagbarwa, and so on. Now imagine you were on a tour all around there, and at each significant stop, each of these cards received a different-coloured, multilingual chop mark to signify where you had been. Including the Grand Canyon of Yarlung Tsangpo, there are at least five of these chops on each card. As we said, remarkable and iconic. And, yes, a couple of the cards have peach blossoms. Otherwise unused. Grade: 1
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Lhasa (Tibet), Holy City, Pilgrimage Road Set
This is an unopened set of cards, in the original cello-wrap, showing what may be 30 scenes of Potala Palace and other notable sights in and around Lhasa. We base our estimate of 30 cards on the 30 thumbnail shots on the reverse of the cardboard cover, which we will scan and e-mail to you if you are interested. All text on the outer cover is in Chinese. Grade: 1
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Qinling Mountains (Maximum Cards) (Set of 9)
Set MC-139 of nine maximum cards from China National Philatelic, issued in 2024 and captioned entirely in Chinese, all in a sort of plastic sleeve. You can see one of the cards here. QR codes and bar codes may help you decipher the details. As mountain postcards go, this is really a very nice set. The Qinling (秦岭) or Qin Mountains, formerly known as the Nanshan (“Southern Mountains”), are a major east–west mountain range in southern Shaanxi Province, and mark the divide between the drainage basins of the Yangtze and Yellow River systems, providing a natural boundary between North and South China. Grade: 1
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Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Emperor Shihuang’s Mausoleum (Set of 5)
Our scan shows you one of the five cards, and most (not all) of the cardboard cover for this set TP43, issued by China Post and fully captioned in English and Chinese. Each card has a different, pre-printed, coloured stamp somewhat matching the main photo. AND, each card has an individual (i.e., for the set) serial number: this set is #0029924. Grade: 1
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Mogao Grottoes (Maximum Cards) (Set of 4)
From Wikipedia (edited): “The Mogao Caves, also known as the Thousand Buddha Grottoes, form a system of 500 temples, 25 km (16 mi) southeast of the center of Dunhuang, on the Silk Road, in Gansu province. The caves may also be known as the Dunhuang Caves; however, this term is also used as a collective term to include other Buddhist cave sites in and around that area, such as the Western Thousand Buddha Caves, Eastern Thousand Buddha Caves, Yulin Caves, and Five Temple Caves. The caves contain some of the finest examples of Buddhist art, spanning a period of 2,000 years.” Our scan shows parts of the four cards, issued by China National Philatelic in 2024 as set MC-140, and the cardboard cover. Grade: 1
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Joint PRC/France Issue (Set of 2) (Maximum Cards)
From 2024, a 2-card set published from the PRC side, with one stamped and postmarked in Chinese and the other in French. Officially, it’s China Post’s set MC-141. Grade: 1
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Huangshan views (Set of 6)
This is an unopened set of six unused cards, all with coloured pre-printed postage, from China Post. They originated from the Huangshan Huaxu Tourism Culture and Creative Co., and while we have not seen all six views, one is of the Wenshu Temple, and one Chinese line translates as “Jieshi Strange Pine Trees are Even Stranger”. We don’t doubt that. Grade: 1
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Qi Baishi (Set of 4)
Qi Baishi, a Hunan native, was a master of Chinese painting, calligraphy, and seal engraving in 20th-century China. This (unused) China Post set TP-44 of four cards, with coloured pre-printed postage, displays his work: our scan shows the cover and one of those cards. Somewhat exceptionally, there’s an extensive English explanation. Grade: 1
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Walking in Kuan Alley and Zhai Alley (set of 12)
Kuan (alternatively: Kwan) Alley and Zhai Alley get combined into one name for touristic purposes, and connote different eras to different people. As a single street loaded with shops and restaurants, especially at night it’s an unbeatable attraction in the middle of Chengdu. Our scan shows you the artwork on the cover of this set of 12 unused cards, but the cards are photos, mostly of historical sites that predated the shops. Grade: 1
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Meeting You in Cheng Du
Unused card in its original cello-wrap sleeve. Grade: 1
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Chengdu Impression (set of many)
This is an unused, unopened (in cello-wrap) set of items in a small (4″ x 5-3/4″) plastic box. The back of the sleeve shows tiny thumbnails of what the circular front logo promises: “15 postcards, 1 PVC postcard, 1 Fragrance card, 6 Stamp stickers, 5 Material photocards …” and while we cannot verify this, we have no reason to doubt it even if we don’t know what those are. Grade: 1
