Title : The 30th Anniversary of Korea-India Diplomatic Relations
Stamp Serial#
 2355
KPC#
 C-1821 
MICHEL#
  
StanGib#
 2734 
Scott#
 2136a 
Date of Issue
 12/10/2003
Quantity
 1,200,000 
Denomination
 190 won 
Design
 Kyong-ju Cheom-seong-dae 
Designer
 Park, Eun-kyung (Korea)
Bharati Mirchandani (India) 
Image Area
 27mm x 37mm 
Perforation
 13 
Sheet Composition
 4 x 4 
Paper
 White unwatermarked
Printing process
and colors
 Photogravure, five colors 
Print
 Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation 
Description
Hyecho, a Buddhist monk from the Silla Kingdom, traveled to India and wrote 'Wang-ocheonchukguk-jeon' (Accounts of Visits to the Five Lands of India) in 727 A.D. His memoir describes the culture, religion and customs of India. Korea and India, which have long maintained close ties through exchanges of the Buddhist culture, established diplomatic relations in 1973. The two nations have developed cooperative ties in all sectors of politics, economy, society and culture. Recently, Korea and India have been strengthening cooperation in the IT sector and more active exchanges in the future is anticipated. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of Korea-India diplomatic relations, a joint stamp is being issued. The stamp features the astrological observatories of the two nations: Kyon-ju's Cheom-seong-dae and Jantar Mantar in Jaipur.

Kyong-ju's Cheom-seong-dae.
Cheomseongdae, which means "Star Gazing Tower", is an astrological observatory built to study the movements of the celestial sphere. On top of the stone foundation that serves as support are layers of stones in the shape of fans. These stones are stacked in a cylinder shape and on top is the platform in the shape of the Chinese character '?' (jeong). Ancient records show that people climbed to the top of the tower using a ladder to observe the skies. The Cheomseongdae is believed to have been built during the reign of Queen Seondeok (A.D. 632 to A.D. 647) of the Silla Kingdom. Cheomseongdae is highly valuable as one of the oldest astronomical observatories of its kind in Asia and demonstrates the highly advanced scientific capabilities of the times. This important cultural asset has been designated as National Treasure No. 31.