Year of the Rooster Stamps, the latest in the Chinese new year Stamps series.

Every year many countries issue Chinese new year stamps featuring one of the 12 Chinese Zodiac sign.

The year 2017 is the Chinese Year of the rooster and begins on January 28th.

The Rooster is the tenth animal in the Chinese zodiac.

Those born in the Year of the Rooster are loyal, trustworthy, observant and keen to offer their opinions to those around them.

Philately News will bring you all the latest stamps issued to celebrate Year of the Rooster.

Check also the Chinese year of the Monkey stamps.

Year of the Rooster Stamps – New Zealand

New Zealand Post issues four gummed stamps inspired by the Chinese folk arts of calligraphy, paper-cutting, and line-art illustration.

The stamps celebrate the multicultural nature of New Zealand with both Chinese and New Zealand elements.

The rooster symbolizes character traits of confidence, courageousness, and resourcefulness, and is the focus of these festive stamps.

$1.00 Calligraphy
The red colour of this stamp represents the traditional colour of Chinese New Year, which mirrors the positive holiday atmosphere.

The calligraphic character of ‘rooster’ has been designed in a ‘paint-brush’ style and can be seen as a decorative element throughout Chinese New Year celebrations.

$1.80 Paper-cut Rooster
One of the commonly used decorations for Chinese New Year is paper-cutting, which can be found everywhere from shop windows to private homes.

The intricate art of paper-cutting dates back thousands of years in China, and the rooster depicted in this paper-cut symbolizes a vibrant and positive start to the day.

The Maori motifs incorporated into the paper-cut bring the diverse Maori and Chinese cultures together.

$2.20 The Rooster
This illustrated rooster is rich with colour and incorporates various Maori and Pacific patterns, including koru, that are symbolic of new life.

The black colour in the design reflects New Zealand’s national identity and blends harmoniously with the red tones that are popular in Chinese culture.

$2.70 Lantern Festival
The Auckland War Memorial Museum is located in Auckland Domain, which in 2016 was the venue for the Lantern Festival for the rst time.

Hundreds of handmade Chinese lanterns were displayed in front of the Domain and more than 100,000 people attended.

Date of Issue: 11 January 2017
Denominations: $1.00, $1.80, $2.20, $2.70

Source: New Zealand Stamps

Year of the Rooster Stamps – Taiwan

To welcome the arrival of the New Year, Taiwan Post issued a set of two stamps and a souvenir sheet entitled “New Year’s Greetings“.

The stamps use a silhouette to express the courage and clarion-call of the cock.

Gold and orange-red transmit an atmosphere of joy, good fortune and celebration for the year of the rooster.

NT$3.5 stamp: “The Golden Cock Proclaiming Joy” is the theme of this stamp. The cock call at dawn heralds the new day; spring marks the beginning of the New Year.

NT$13 stamp: An Exuberance of Joyous Celebrations. Being a homonym of the word for “auspiciousness” (ji), the word for “rooster” (ji) expresses the wish that the New Year will bring an abundance of the riches of life.

NT$12 souvenir sheet: A pair of roosters and an auspicious Chinese ruyi knot depict the rooster as auspicious and express a wish for peace in all things, complete satisfaction and lasting happiness.

Date of Issue: 1 December 2016
Denominations: NT$3.5, NT$13, NT$12

Source: Taiwan Stamps

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