China 99

China 99

China 99
World Philatelic Exhibition
By Yulong Zhong (of the P.R.China)

China 99 World Philatelic Exhibition was held in Beijing, the capital of China (Figures 1 and 2), from August 21st to 30th. There were altogether 17 Maximaphily exhibits on display. Because this was the last Grand Philatelic meeting in the 20th century with so many Maximaphily exhibits, the writer - as a serious maximaphilist would not let such a good opportunity slip, and did go to Beijing for a thorough study of all the maximaphily exhibits

These 17 Maximaphily Exhibits, from Belgium, China, Cyprus, France, Greece, Japan, Luxembourg and Macau were awarded one Gold medal, two Vermeil medals, eight Large Silver medals, five silver medals and one Bronze medal. They are listed here in order of their achievment:

Fig 1
The Imperial Palace

Figure 1: The Imperial Palace, Hall of Supreme Harmony, Beijing. The Imperial Palace was formerly known as the "Forbidden City" and was the residence of the imperial rulers of China from its construction in 1420 untill the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911. The palace complex covers an area of 183 acres, and is the best preserved example of medieval Chinese architecture. Issue: Oct. 12, 1998.

1. "Sites and Monuments which contributed to Human Culture and History outside Europe, until 1940". points 92, Award: Gold (for the 7th time). Exhibitor: Margaret A. Kotopoulis of Greece.

2. "Decouvrons la Belgique" ( discovering Belgium). Points: 89. Award: Larde Vermeil. Exhibitor: Marie Louise Henriet of Belgium.

3. "Cartes Maximum du Grand-Duche de Luxembourg". Points: 87. Award: Large Vermeil. Exhibitor: Bernard Kraemer of Luxembourg.

4."bridges" Points: 85. Award: Large Vermeil. Exhibitor: Joaquim Canteiro of Portugal.

5."Cyprus Cross-roads of Three Continents". Points: 81. Award: Vermeil. Exhibitor: Nicos Rangos of Cyprus.

6. "Starting Point or Terminal Point - A Story that Tells about Entrance and Gates of Buildings". Points: 80. Award: Vermeil. Exhibitor: Venda Ke of P.R. China.

7. " The Conquest of the Air; from Icarus to the Apollo Project". points: 78. Award: Large Silver. Exhibitor: Paulo Jorge Pinheiro Da Silva of Portugal.

8. "Women in the Arts". Points: 77. Award: Large Silver. Exhibitor: Leda Theocharides of Cyprus.

9. "The Trip with National Costumes of Maximum Cards". Points: 76. Award: Large Silver. Exhibitor: Nikolla of Albania.

10. "Mamals". Points: 76. Award: Large Silver. Exhibitor: Wu Gang of P.R. China.

11. "Les Oiseaux dans le Monde" (Birds of the Worls). Points: 75. Award: Large Silver. Exhibitor: Pierre Vanderhaute of Belgium.

12. "Albercht Durer the Great Painter and Engraver". Points: 74. Award: Silver. Exhibitor: Constantinos Samanides of Greece.

13. "Le Monde des Poissons" (The World of fish). Points: 73. Award: Silver. Exhibitor: jose Silvio Soares of Portugal.

14. "Toys and Games". Points: 67. Award: Silver Bronze. Exhibitor: Michalacopoulou of Greece.

15. "That's all about Macaw". Points: 60. Award: Bronze. Exhibitor: Wong lon Kuong of Macaw.

(Editor's note: No information was given on the 16th and 17th Exhibits by the author of this article).

Fig 2
The Great wall of China

Figure 2: The Great wall of China north of beijing. It stretches for 2150 ml (4100 km) across northern china from the Yellow Sea to the central Asia desert. The Wall is 25 ft (7.6 m) high and 12 ft (3.7 m) broad. It was improved up to 220 AD and is a World Heritage site. Issue: Oct 9, 1988.

Naturally there were some disappointing exhibits like "Le Monde des Poissons" "Women in the Arts", "Albercht Durer Great Painter and Engraver", and "That's all about Macaw". Most of them featured cards from 1970's to 1990, and many of them were official maximum cards which did not meet the FIP rules.

On the other hand the exhibits "Starting Point or Terminal Point - A Story that Tells about Entrances and Gates of Buildings" by Wenda Ke of China, and "Cyprus Cross-roads of three Continents" by Nicos of Cyprus, both had interesting stories with tightnit plots and excellent presentations, especially the former, its subject and approach were new and distinctive. They also had some old cards before 1935, with the earliest cancellation in 1916.

A few words can also be said about the "Bridges", its plan was brief yet effective, and logically balanced and in accordance with the subject and title. The plan was as follows:
1. The Pillar/Beam Bridges; 1.1 Wooden; 1.2 Metalic; 1.3 Concrete.
2. Arch Bridges; 2.1 Stone; 2.2 Wooden; 2.3 Metallic; 2.4 Concrete.
3. Suspension Bridges; 3.1 with Ropes; 3.2 with Cables.
4. Aqueducts and Canal Bridges.

The highest award for a Maximaphily exhibit, a Gold medal, was given to Margaret Kotopoulis of greece. Her exhibit "Sites and monuments which contributed to Human Culture and History outside Europe until 1940" was the highlight of all Maximaphily exhibits. It displayed most of the first and rare maximum cards outside Europe. For instance, there were altogether 13 Sphinx cards from 1902 to 1919, and some wonderful Sights on rare cards, for the enjoyments of maximum cards collectors. I nearly stood for three houres in front of her frames. Not only the Treatment and Importance of the exhibit, Knowledge and Research, but also the Condtion, Rarity and Presentation were all perfect.

From this exhibition I discovered that many of the interesting exhibits were classified by themes. Perhaps Thematic maximaphily will still play a main role in the future.

(Yulong Zhong is a member of the Academic Committe of Guangdong Philatelic Federation; Vice president of Chaozhou Philatelic Association, and chief editor of "Foreign Maximaphily")

Editor: George Constantourakis | Webmaster: Itzhak Shdemati
Former Editor: Jesse F. Knight
Last Updating: Feb-06-2000