Generations of Chinese zodiac stamps

The first zodiac stamp for the Year of the Monkey (1980). [Photo/IC]

The year 2016 marks the start of the fourth round of Chinese zodiac stamps. 92-year-old celebrated artist Huang Yongyu, who designed the first zodiac stamp in 1980, created the stamp for the upcoming Year of the Monkey.

China Post issued the first zodiac stamp for the Year of the Monkey in 1980. The other 11 zodiac signs were printed on the stamps, one by one, in successive years. The third round of zodiac stamps was completed in 2015 with the Year of the Sheep.

The first Monkey Year stamp, nicknamed "red monkey" because of its red background, was 0.08 Yuan ($0.012), and its value grew by 200,000 times in the past 30 years. It has become a very precious stamp to the stamp collectors.