Happy Chinese New Year to around 1.3 billion -ish people and all of their relations around the world! The world largest population has their own calendar, the Han calendar, which usually begins on the second dark moon after the winter solstice, occasionally the third dark moon. Get it? Me neither. It is also called the Spring festival and the most important social and economic event of the year.
Canadian design studio Paprika designed these beautiful stamps to mark the Year Of The Horse and I love the stylised horses and the rich red and gold colour used. Red in particular is highly symbolic for the Chinese and associated with good fortune and joy as well as fire, warding off evil. During Chinese New Year or special occasions people give out red envelopes with money and I’m sure they appreciate the stamps to tie in with the Year Of The Horse.
The seal in the shape of a horseshoe is a neat little touch and since Paprika is located in Quebec, the French speaking part of Canada, they’ve incorporated both the French and English word for horse on the stamps as well as the Chinese symbol. Ok, my Mandarin is a bit rusty but I’m taking an educated guess here so feel free to correct me in the comments. Let me finish by wishing you:
Happiness, Prosperity, Longevity
福禄寿 fú lù shòu
To find out more about Chinese New Year traditions check out the International Business Times.
DESIGN & PHOTOGRAPHY | Paprika