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Title: New Year's Greetings for 2007
( View Souvenir Sheet) | ||||
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Stamp Serial#
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2530 | |||
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KPC#
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N-83 | |||
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Scott#
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Date of Issue
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12/01/2006 | |||
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Quantity
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1,600,000 | |||
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Denomination
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250 won | |||
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Design
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A pig running through the snow | |||
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Designer
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Mo Ji-won | |||
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Image Area
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23mm x 33mm | |||
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Perforation
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13 | |||
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Sheet Composition
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4 x 5 | |||
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Paper
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White Unwatermarked | |||
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Printing process
and colors |
Photogravure, six colors (printed in photostorage ink) |
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Print
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Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation | |||
| Description | ||||
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The upcoming 2007 is the year of the pig. Pigs are estimated to
have been raised in Korea since about 2,000 years ago. According to a book titled "Romance
of the Three Kingdoms" (Samgukji), 1) in Buyeo, people used names of various livestock as
names of government posts, one of which was "Jeoga" meaning the pig and 2) lots of pigs
were raised, with people eating the meat, using pig leather to make clothing, and rubbing
pig oil on their bodies to endure the bitter cold. The "Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms"
(Samguk sagi) recounts that in Goguryeo, pigs were used as sacrificial offerings when
performing religious rituals to honor the gods of the sky and earth. This long tradition
of using pigs as a sacrifice has endured as even today people use pigs as a sacrifice when
a family offers sacrifice to spirits, during a major exorcism by a exorcist, town
community's religious ceremony, etc.
Pigs have from ancient times been regarded as the source of wealth or good fortune or as a family's guardian deity. A dream involving pigs was interpreted as a fortuitous dream, and a picture of a pig were hung, on the walls, much like an amulet. In mythologies, pigs are expressed as an animal with divine power. Ancient relics and literature also describe the pig as an auspicious premonition. Wishing for good fortune in this upcoming New Year with pigs which are regarded by Korean people as a symbol of good luck, a new year's stamp featuring "a pig running through the snow" is issued. This stamp is printed with photostorage ink, which absorbs lights and emits them in the dark. The pig itself and the snow glow in the dark. |
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