Revenue stamps of China were first prepared for issue by the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

in the late 19th century, but the first revenue stamps which were in general use were issued by the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

after the 1911 revolution. A wide variety of revenue stamps have since been issued, including numerous provincial and local issues. China's first revenue stamps, the

Red Revenue The Red Revenues () are Qing dynasty Chinese revenue stamps that were overprinted (surcharged) to be used as postage stamps in 1897. Their limited number, fine design and the intaglio (printmaking), intaglio process made the stamps in this series ...

s, were ordered by the Chinese Imperial Customs in 1896. Around 600,000 revenue stamps with a denomination of 3¢ were ordered from

Waterlow and Sons Waterlow and Sons Limited was a major worldwide engraver of currency, postage stamps, stocks and bond certificates based in London, Watford and Dunstable in England. The company was founded as a family business in 1810. It was acquired in 1961 ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, but they were not issued due to opposition from corrupt customs officials and political leaders. The stamps were stored by the Shanghai Customs Statistical Department, and in 1897 they were overprinted with various new denominations for use as postage stamps. In 1899, another series of revenue stamps was ordered. It had denominations of 20, 100 and 1000

cash In economics, cash is money in the physical form of currency, such as banknotes and coins. In bookkeeping and financial accounting, cash is current assets comprising currency or currency equivalents that can be accessed immediately or near-imm ...

and it was printed by the

American Bank Note Company ABCorp is an American corporation providing contract manufacturing and related services to the authentication, payment and secure access business sectors. Its history dates back to 1795 as a secure engraver and printer, and assisting the newl ...

, but once again local opposition prevented the stamps' issue. Another issue consisting of six values (2, 10, 50, 100, 500, and 1000 cash) was authorized by the imperial government in 1907, but provincial governors opposed its issue and the stamps only exist unused. Following the

Xinhai Revolution The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last imperial dynasty, the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of China. The revolution was the culmination of a d ...

, some of the unissued stamps from 1899 were issued with "Republic of China" overprints. In 1912, the Republic issued a new series of revenue stamps depicting the

Great Wall of China The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand ''li'' wall") is a series of fortifications that were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against various nomadic grou ...

with denominations of 1¢, 2¢, 10¢, 50¢ and $1. This series remained in use until the 1920s, and many printing variations exist. A number of provincial, local and private overprints exist on this issue. Between 1926 and 1928, the so-called "Wheat series" of revenue stamps was issued, incorporating the name of each province in the design. A series depicting the Chinese flag on a map was issued in 1927. Many overprints exist on these issues as well. In addition, some provinces issued their own designs of revenue stamps. A set of stamps depicting the

Liuhe Pagoda Liuhe Pagoda (), literally Six Harmonies Pagoda, is a multi-story Chinese pagoda in southern Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China. It is located at the foot of Yuelun Hill, facing the Qiantang River. It was originally constructed in 970 by the Wuyu ...

was issued between 1934 and 1944. In 1940, during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

, the Japanese government issued revenue stamps depicting the

Temple of Heaven The Temple of Heaven () is a complex of imperial religious buildings situated in the southeastern part of central Beijing. The complex was visited by the Emperor of China, Emperors of the Ming dynasty, Ming and Qing dynasty, Qing dynasties for ...

in Beijing for use in occupied areas. Meanwhile, between 1938 and 1944 the Nationalist government issued stamps depicting

H. H. Kung Kung Hsiang-hsi (; 11 September 1881 – 16 August 1967), often known as Dr. H. H. Kung, was a Chinese banker and politician in the early 20th century. He married Soong Ai-ling, the eldest of the three Soong sisters; the other two married Pres ...

Chiang Kai-shek Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...

Lin Sen Lin Sen (; 16 March 1868 – 1 August 1943), courtesy name Tze-chao (子超), sobriquet Chang-jen (長仁), was a Chinese politician who served as Chairman of the National Government of the Republic of China from 1931 until his death. Early l ...

and

Sun Yat-sen Sun Yat-sen (; also known by several other names; 12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925)Singtao daily. Saturday edition. 23 October 2010. section A18. Sun Yat-sen Xinhai revolution 100th anniversary edition . was a Chinese politician who serve ...

for use in its territory. Various other designs of revenue stamps were used throughout the 1940s, including a flag over globe design, stamps depicting the

Zhengyangmen Qianmen () is the colloquial name for Zhengyangmen (; Manchu:; Möllendorff:tob šun-i duka, literally meaning "Gate of the Zenith Sun"), a gate in Beijing's historic city wall. The gate is situated to the south of Tiananmen Square and once guar ...

and Fu Hsing gates, and stamps showing farming equipment. In 1946, the so-called "Transportation series", depicting various forms of land, sea and air transport, was issued. Various printings of these stamps exist, and they were also overprinted for postal use. China also issued stamps for specific uses, such as consolidated tax, judicial and commodity taxes. The latter included stamps for taxes on cigarettes, tobacco, alcohol and fuel.

References

External links

{{Revenue Stamps Taxation in China Philately of China

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

See also

References

External links