Postal Museum

May 1980

中文

The Postal Museum, and right, the "Large Dragon Stamps" （Ta Lung Tou）, comprise the first set of Chinese postage stamps, issued in 1878.

"If all government bureaux were as efficient and helpful as the postal service here in Taiwan, then it would be paradise indeed," one young foreign businessman enthused when asked what he thought of the Republic of China's postal service.

In a recent interview with To the Point International, public relations director for the Directorate General of Posts, said: "Our employees cannot leave for home until the mail is sorted and delivered. They are paid overtime, but the mail must go out." Today, in the Republic of China, mail is delivered twice a day seven days a week. A special-delivery letter mailed at 3 pm anywhere in Taiwan will be delivered by 10 pm the same day. Most post offices are open from 8 am to 6 pm on weekdays. For the past eight years, special night post offices established in the island's two main cities, Taipei and Kaohsiung, have been open every day until midnight.

The postal service also runs one of the most successful banking operations in Taiwan, encouraging all, including students, to save. As of 1979, more than US$2,780 million had been deposited in post office savings banks. The post office in the Republic of China is one of the few in the world that makes a profit, this profit has been increasing steadily over the past 10 years. In 1978, the 13,000-man organization earned an impressive US$129 million, compared to only US$20 million 10 years earlier. In the same 10 years, mail-route distance served has jumped from 199,871 km to 758,854 km. The number of post offices has been increased from 7,757 to 10,565, located all over the island in isolated villages as well as in main cities.

The Postal Museum, situated at Hsintien in suburban Taipei, was inaugurated in 1966. Aimed at introducing various postal services to the public, and providing assistance to stamp collectors, it provides a comprehensive collection of postal documents, publications, literary works, stamps and other materials of historical value. From time to time, exhibitions of postal documents, records or postage stamps based on different themes are held at the museum. For instance, a special exhibition of postage stamps based on the "Year of the Monkey" was held on the occasion of the Postal Festival on March 20 this year.

The lawns in front of the museum are dotted with all kinds of pillar-boxes--made of cement, iron, aluminum, and enamel--each from a different period of history. There are 15 exhibition rooms in the museum displaying different types of postal materials and historical data. As director of the museum, Wang Feng-chung, said: "The large collection of domestic and foreign postage stamps is the outstanding feature of the museum. Almost all the stamps issued during the past 30 years have been collected."

A postage stamp is in fact a representative of a nation in miniature, as the artistic designs on postage stamps may enable people to understand more clearly the history, culture, geography, folklore, customs, and the progress made in various fields by a country.

The statue of Sir Rowland Hill of Great Britain, who initiated the postal system, and a facsimile of the first stamp issued in the world, the "Penny Black," are displayed in the museum.

In 1878, Emperor Kuang Hsu of the Ching Dynasty issued the first set of Chinese postage stamps, using a dragon surrounded by clouds as the central design. As the dragon was the emblem of the Manchu Dynasty, the stamps are usually referred to as "Large Dragon Stamps," and since then stamps have been known colloquially as "lung tou" (dragon's head) among the Chinese people.

Since 1878, China has issued more than 3,000 postage stamps featuring a wide variety of designs reflecting the progress made by the Republic of China. The stamps have not only made a big contribution to introducing Chinese culture to other nations, but have also been chosen as subjects to be displayed on the covers of international philatelic and postal periodicals. Many stamps have won prizes in international competitions for their graphic design.

Among the most popular stamps among philatelists both within Taiwan and overseas are those featuring the ancient treasures housed in the National Palace Museum, folklore themes, and the 12 signs of the Chinese animal zodiac. In fact, these small emblems carry the flag of the Republic of China more effectively and much farther than anything else. An article headlined "Origin and Development of Chinese Characters Postage Stamps" has even been carried in a Yugoslavian newspaper.

One of the most impressive displays in the Postal Museum is undoubtedly that containing photographs of courageous postmen, and the citations they have received. A prominent hero featured here is Wen Yung-nan, who perished when he was swept away while crossing a bridge destroyed by typhoon Nora at Chihpen in Taitung County in southeastern Taiwan in October 1973. A memorial tablet erected in Taitung, topped with Wen's bust, has been copied and installed in the Postal Museum.

Two military postmen won places in the Museum because of their courage in carrying out their missions during the intensive shelling of Kinmen island by the Chinese Communists on Aug. 23, 1958. Luckily, the mail bags and the two brave postmen survived the attack.

In addition, there are rooms containing military postal data, ancient and modern postal service methods, lifelike wax figures of postal workers, collections of international stamps, and displays featuring postal transportation methods, remittances and savings services. There is also a library for the use of academic institutions and mail workers.

As stamps transcend national boundaries and possess immense power for mass communication, the Postal Museum will certainly expand its operations in the future.

[Picture Caption]

Left: The Postal Museum, and right, the "Large Dragon Stamps" (Ta Lung Tou), comprise the first set of Chinese postage stamps, issued in 1878. Since then China has issued more than 3,000 stamps, which have become favorite collection items for philatelists.

From left: The destroyed mailbox, and unexploded bombs collected during the intensive shelling of Kinmen island by the Chinese Communists on Aug. 23, 1958. The first pillar box installed after the start of the postal system in China in the Ching dynasty. Wheel of an ox-cart that carried mail many years ago in Taiwan. Citation outlining the courageous deeds of postman Wu Wan-lai.

Exhibition rooms to show equipment of the postal administration (1) and postal materials from the past (2). 3. Display of international postage stamps.