Asian Civilizations on China Stamps in 2020 - Pakistan-Related Sites are Moenjodaro and Harrapa

China Post has planned to issue a set of 6 special stamps of "Asian Civilization (I)" in June 2020. The exact date is not yet known. Initially the set was scheduled to be issued on May 15, 2020, however it got a bit delayed due to COVID-19 crisis.

The sites depicted on the stamps are: Wuerta Temple (Iraq), Flood Mud Plate, Harappa Seal (Pakistan), Mohenjo Daro Site (Pakistan), Liangzhu jade Cong (China) and Shimao Site (China).

Asia is one of the earliest settlements of human beings and the important birthplace of human civilization. Asia is rich in land, beautiful in mountains and rivers. On one third of the world's land, it has two thirds of the world's population, 47 countries and more than 1000 nationalities. From thousands of years BC, people living in the Tigris, Euphrates, Indus, Ganges, Yellow River, Yangtze River and other basins began to cultivate irrigation, cast utensils and make dishes, and build homes. After years of baptism, generations of Asian ancestors engraved the practice of generative life into a long history and accumulated profound civilization.

The splendid Asian civilization has written a colourful chapter for the development history of world civilization. Human civilization is more splendid because of Asia. The six stamps respectively selected the representative sites and cultural relics of ancient civilization in the Tigris River, Euphrates River, Indus River, Ganges River, Yellow River, Yangtze River and other basins.

Mohenjo-Daro Site, located in Pakistan, was listed in the world heritage list in 1980. Built around 2600 BC, it is an important city of Indus River Civilization, known as "the metropolis of ancient Indus River civilization".

Harappa Seal, a large number of animal image seals have been unearthed in the Indus River Basin. The seal materials are frozen stone, clay, ivory and copper, with the largest number of frozen stone. One of the more famous seals, found in the Indian River valley near Harappa, is similar to a square, like the size of a modern stamp, which is carved with a unicorn image based on the body of a cow.

Ur Temple/ Wuerta temple was listed in the world heritage list in 2016 - located in southern Iraq, a sanctuary for ecological diversity and a landscape of urban relics in Mesopotamia. Ahwal consists of seven sites, including the site of Ur city. The ancient city of Ur, built by Sumerians more than 6000 years ago, is one of the earliest cities in the world. 

Flood Mud Board or Flood Tablet(Iraq), one of the treasures of the British Museum, records the flood story in the epic of Gilgamesh, which is almost the same as the story of Noah's Ark. It was discovered by British archaeologists in 1849 in ancient Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire. The mud board is written with cuneiform characters, which is one of the earliest characters in human history. 

Liangzhu Jade Cong, the site of Liangzhu ancient city, is located in Yuhang District, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province. It was listed in the world heritage list in 2019. It is a site of the late Neolithic age from 3300 BC to 2300 BC. Liangzhu ancient city site is an example of human early urban civilization, demonstrating the history of Chinese civilization for more than 5000 years.

Shimao Site, located in Shenmu county, Yulin City, Shaanxi Province, was listed in the preparatory list of China's world cultural heritage in 2019. It belongs to the remains from the late Neolithic to the early Bronze Age, about 4000 years ago. Shimao site is a window to explore the origin of Chinese civilization.

Details of Stamps: The main body of the set of stamps is prominent, the layers are clear, and the overall appearance is simple and elegant.

• The first picture takes the Ur/ Wuerta Temple as the main picture, and the background shows the Ur/ Wuerta temple from different angles.
• The second picture takes the flood cement board as the main body of the picture, and the background shows the local wedge-shaped characters of the flood mud board.
• The third picture takes the Harappa Seal on the front as the main body of the picture, and the background shows the Yin pattern on the back of the seal.
• The fourth picture shows the Great Bath in the center of MohenjoDaro Site. The main body of the picture and the background form a natural transition through the change of color, highlighting the main structure of the site.
• The fifth picture shows the Jade Cong of Liangzhu. The main body of the picture is the jade Cong, and the background shows the exquisite local patterns and shapes of the jade Cong.
• The sixth picture shows the overall shape of Shimao Site. The main body of the picture and the background form a natural transition through the change of color, highlighting the main structure of the site.

This set of stamps is designed by Yishan and printed by Beijing Stamp factory.