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Hongkong Post announced today (June 3) that a stamp sheetlet entitled "World Heritage in China Series No. 4: Honghe Hani Rice Terraces" and associated philatelic products will be released for sale on June 18 (Thursday).
Added to the World Heritage List by the World Heritage Committee under the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in 2013, the Cultural Landscape of Honghe Hani Rice Terraces covers 16 603 hectares of land in southern Yunnan. Boasting more than 3 700 terrace steps, the massive Honghe Hani rice terraces have been continuously used and developed over 1 300 years of farming.
Over time, the Hani people have devised a complex system of channels to take water from the forested mountaintops to different levels of the terraces. Today, the landscape reflects an agricultural ecosystem formed by the four interwoven elements of forests, villages, terraces and rivers in an extraordinary demonstration of harmony between mankind and the environment.
The stamp sheetlet depicts the picturesque scenery of the terraces of Laohuzui, Bada and Duoyishu at sunset and in the spring mist that envelops the seemingly endless layers of terraces meandering along the slopes and stretching across every ravine of the vast mountainous terrain. Across the middle of the sheetlet runs a design representing a strip of cloth with a colourful Hani motif to add an attractive ethnic touch to the overall design of the stamp sheetlet.
Hongkong Post has been issuing stamp sheetlets in the World Heritage in China Series since 2012. This is the fourth such sheetlet in the series.
Official First Day Covers will be on sale at $1.20 each at all post offices from tomorrow (June 4). The stamp sheetlet and the associated philatelic products will be displayed at the General Post Office, Tsim Sha Tsui Post Office, Tsuen Wan Post Office, Sha Tin Central Post Office and Tuen Mun Central Post Office from the same day. Advance orders for servicing self-provided covers will be accepted at all philatelic offices from tomorrow to June 10.
Information about this special stamp issue and the associated philatelic products is available from Hongkong Post's website at www.hongkongpost.hk and via the Hongkong Post Mobile App.
Ends/Wednesday, June 3, 2015
Issued at HKT 10:00
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