Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426 
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Apr 30, 2023 13:38:03 GMT
In Dorin's Facebook group, there was some confusion arisen after I posted about Taiwan's 'pictorial cancels'. I will attempt at explaining different cancels offered by the official postal agency operating in Taiwan (let's call it 'Taiwan Post' for now even though China may complain) which, like the Japanese ones, I think deserve a thread on its own right. Before embarking on pictorial cancel that is the subject of this thread, let me talk about 'regular' cancels that are not pictorial first. They are necessary to understanding the whole mechanism. These cancels are typically in the form of a black circle with textual inscription inside. The upper arc and the lower arc usually denote the location where the cancel was applied (one of them can be written in English if the cancel is destinated for oversea mails), and the centre usually a bunch of numerals denoting the date/time. Below this series of numerals, there is a Chinese character (sometimes accompanied by a numeral that I still don't know what it means) that indicates the type of cancel it is. 
[Postmark on the shipping form fixed on a parcel.] 
[Postmark on a maxicard.] The naming scheme used by Taiwan Post can be quite confusing for foreigners. The first thing you need to know is that this Chinese character inscribed in the middle of the circle is an ordinal numeral representing a position in a sequential order. The first position in the Celestial Stems (天干地支) is denoted by「甲」. You can think of this symbol as alphabet「A」in English alphabet sequence (or「I」in the Roman numeral sequence). Now, according to this Wikipedia article, Taiwan Post stipulates the usage of about a dozen such regular cancels with Chinese numeral inscribed inside: 甲 (A): used for postal item乙 (B): used for the banking service provided by Taiwan Post 丙 (C): used for international mail (export) 丁 (D): used for international mail (import) 戊 (E): used for registered mail 己 (F): used for parcel 庚 (G): used for express mail 辛 (H): used for 'normal' lettermail 壬 (I): used for forwarding mail 癸 (J): used for philatelic item... (This list may not be perfectly accurate as I have found other conflicing information online. But accuracy is not the point here; rather, the point is the existence of this much regular cancels whose usage is administrated by Taiwan Post.) There are so many of them but in the pratical reality, except B-cancel, every other cancel from C to I are commonly replaced by the A-cancel. My parcels received from Taiwan are always marked with an A-cancel. So we are really just dealing with 2 black circular cancels that I call 'regular' and are not pictorial: that are the A-cancel for postal item, and the J-cancel for philatelic item. The difference between them is that the A-cancel intended for postal use is valid for one day only, and technically can only be applied on items that are actually mailed. This means that the Taiwanese variety of Ukraine support maxicard my friend helped me producing last year, is actually not allowed to be made. It should have been marked with a J-cancel because the card didn't pass through the mailing process as it is.  On the other hand, the J-cancel intended for collecting purpose can be availble up to 10 days. This means that if you want to get a cancel that says the 1st of January which is a national holiday -- therefore all post offices across the country are closed -- you have up to the 10th of January to request it.
Now, let's look at the pictorial cancels. According to Taiwan Post's website, there are 3 types of cancels in the form of 'picture' that can be collected (this list does not include first-day-of-issue cancels).  Roughly translated, they are: (1) 「臨時郵局」戳 'Temporary post office cancel' (dated) (2) 「風景」戳 'Landscape cancel' (undated) (3) 「紀念」戳 'Souvenir cancel' (dated)  Personaly, I have never seen or requested #1 or #3; it's #2 that I have collected. 「風景」means landscape, and this is the same term used by Japan Post who calls their 'pictorial cancels'「風景印」(obviously, the last Chinese character 戳/印 means a cancel/marking in Mandarin/Japanese). I don't know if Taiwan Post imitates Japan Post in naming their cancels, but since both of them can be obtained at designated post offices at any time when a set of conditions are satisfied, I just call them both 'pictorial cancels'. Canada Post also provides various pictorial cancels that can be requested at anytime. There are 2 unusual things I found with these pictorial cancels (#2): (a) It is undated. Whereas the other two -- usually avaible for one day or a short period of time -- are dated. (b) It doesn't cover a stamp (so technically, by pure semantic, I can't call such a thing in English 'cancel' since it doesn't cancel anything). I find these two points rather strange. Maybe it's a different kind of philatelic element? What I am sure is that this red-pink mark is a philatelic element that is administrated by Taiwan Post. One needs to present a (postage) stamp to get it, and only post office clerks are allowed to give it (although some of them are so busy that they let me do it myself -- whence some of my marks actually covered part of the stamps). It's different from a souvenir (rubber) stamp that's often put on a counter at a touristic attraction, and that every visitor can get at liberty. To request such a 'thing' in a Taiwanese post office, one needs to present a Taiwanese stamp (of any value) on a piece of paper. Each stamp can be used to request 2 different such cancels in the red-pink colour. The post office clerk will first cancel the stamp using the A-cancel or J-cancel (depending on whether the item is meant to be mailed) and then apply the pictorial cancel at an empty space in a way that does not cover the stamp. In other words, these pictorial cancels don't actually 'cancel' a stamp; they accompany a A-cancel or J-cancel. This is the official procedure that should be carried out, however, in reality, many clerks have very little knowledge about it and often ignore one or several steps. For instance, there are clerks who didn't know that the presence of A-cancel or J-cancel was mandatory, and gave the collector this thing:  This means that the collector can then remove the stamp from the first sheet of paper to fix it on a second sheet of paper, and request two other such cancels at another time. There is no way of knowing if the stamp has been used or not. The correct result should be like this:  I admit that the situation is confusing and fussy in Taiwan. Hard-core 'purists' would scorn the existence of such pictorial 'things' and call them 'souvenir markings' without any validity. But I like collecting them anyways. P.S. The first-day-of-issue cancels that are offered at the new release of a stamp in Taiwan are also pictorial. |
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swvl
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Posts: 548
What I collect: FDCs, plus some US modern and new issues. Topical interests include music, art, literature, baseball, space...
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Post by swvl on Apr 30, 2023 14:59:58 GMT
Very interesting post, Linda ! It sounds like a somewhat confusing system, but one with many opportunities for people who like to make philatelic art and/or covers. Am I right in understanding that this type of pictorial cancel is generally available at all, or most, post offices in Taiwan? Or is this a service that's only available at certain post offices? |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Apr 30, 2023 15:57:10 GMT
@ swvl No, these pictorial cancels are available at certain post offices only. Here is the complete list. Notice that some post offices, like 臺北北門郵局 in Taipei, offer several pictorial cancels, because they are where the philatelic centres are located. They make a number of important cancels that are related to a particular urban area (e.g. Taipei city) in one centre to make collecting easier for the collectors. Usually these post offices are gigantic, and have several buildings/floors. |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Apr 30, 2023 16:15:22 GMT
I just did a quick research. There are 1298 post offices in Taiwan, and 362 pictorial cancels (some of them are duplicates) available. If I factor out the duplicates (a cancel that is available at more than one post office), this means ~20% of post office in Taiwan offers a pictorial cancel.
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on May 1, 2023 15:39:14 GMT
The current pictorial cancel offered by Alishan Post Office has at least 8 predecessors.  The first pictorial cancel for this post office depicting a 3000-year-old giant cypress was introduced in 1958. Between then and 1999 (the cypress fell in 1997), the design of the cypress cancel had undergone at least 6 changes. A short-lived cancel showing the railway's terminus was introduced in 1999, but due to that the 1999 Jiji earthquake had altered the landscape, it ceased to be in used soon after. Then the 8th cancel showing Sister Ponds was in use between 1999 and 2013. Here are some images of the previous pictorial cancels I found online (*): 
(*) blog.xuite.net/a891055856/001/23938742 |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on May 2, 2023 9:42:29 GMT
This is the pictorial cancel of the (Taoist) Chaotian Temple in Beigang, dedicated to Mazu, the deified form of the medieval shamaness Moniang Lin from Fujian, ancient China, who is said to be the protector of fishermen and sailors. Established in 1694 and constructed in the early 18th century, this is the 'mother temple' (祖廟) of some 300 Mazu temples in Taiwan and a popular pilgrimage destination. 
[Date of cancellation: 20 March 2023.]  According to the tradition, when a new temple is built in an area, believers first bring the new statue to an older temple known for its history of miracles to obtain the spiritual power of a given deity. After a special ceremony to divide the deity to be re-enshrined elsewhere, the younger statue is regarded as a kind of clone/double of the deity of the older temple with similar spiritual power. This process is called 'fenling' (分靈, lit. division of the spirit), similar to 'bunrei' (分霊) in Japanese Shintoism. However, the younger one must pay visit to the older one every year to retain its spiritual power. It is believed that the closer in the hierachy the clone deity is to the deity enshrined at the mother temple, the higher its level and the stronger its divine power. As the mother temple, Beigang Chaotian Temple is the destination for several notable annual pilgrimages in Taiwan, including the Baishatun Mazu Pilgrimage, a propagation process through which the deity that has been 'divided out' some 150 km away goes back to the mother temple. Every year, after the lunar new year, the Mazu of Gongtian Temple in Baishatun is placed in a palanquin and carried in procession on foot to visit the Mazu of Chaotian Temple in Beigan, then returns to Baishatun to end the pilgrimage. The total distance covered is between 300 to 400 km. This pilgrimage is unique for its route 'being unpredictably decided by Mazu', resulting in difference in duration and pilgrimage route every year. (I don't know how it works, but it's said that the palanguin carriers have the ability to feel Mazu's wil -- in other words, the spirit of Mazu would indicate them where to go, when to stop for the night, etc. It's believed that Mazu's procession brings special protection to a location/commerce, so many local people consider it an honour to have welcomed Mazu's palanquin into their commerces or homes.) My bike tour around the island of Taiwan started as I was trying to catch up with the Baishatun Mazu Pilgrimage procession to document this major religious event. However, the procession advanced at so fast a speed that I on the two wheels only catched it up in Beigang. It's certainly a very challenging pilgrimage for pilgrims who only know the starting point and the destination due to the multitide of unexpected stops Mazu made along the way. 
[Some pilgrim came well-prepared.] 
[So many people.]  
[So many people squeezed to the altar to see Mazu's statues. I am not sure which one is from Baishatun; I heard it's the one on the right.]  [This palanquin with pink roof is nicknamed 'the pink supercar' because of an incident happened in 2013. In one afternoon, Mazu of Baishatun arrived at the BMW exhibition centre in the county of Changhua and signaled to a stationary sedan to give way. The staff moved the sedan to let Mazu's palanquin to 'park' at that place. See this video.]   In Beigang, at night, I slept on the ground of the gym of an elementary school with tons of pilgrims from all over Taiwan. 
This year's pilgrimage is the first one after 2 years of annulation due to the pandemic, and has gathered 150,000 pilgrims -- the largest crowd to date. A programmer even designed an (unofficial) app to allow users to track Mazu's progress, to know where bathrooms / free meals / places to sleep / etc. are. 
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on May 5, 2023 11:19:07 GMT
Pictorial cancel of Gaomei Wetlands in Taichung with matching stamp.  [Date of cancellation: 16 Feburary 2023.] Note that this is the first pictorial cancel I collected in Taiwan. The post office clerk let me apply the pictorial cancel myself; at that time I didn't know it shouldn't cover the stamp. The predecessor of Gaomei Wetland was Gaomei Seaside Resort established during the Japanese rule. Following the completion and the opening of Taichung Port in 1965, the beach was gradually closed due to the accumulation of sediment. Some 20 years later, the 701.3-hectare muddy area was finally designated officially for conservation and eco-tourism. [1]  At the wetland, visitors are asked to stay on the 800-meter dock extending to the edge between the wetland and the ocean to not disturb the wetland ecology, but many people defy this by jumping into the mud.  It is always very windy there (hence the presence of wind turbines), even migratory birds struggle to stay stationary at a spot.  ____________________ [1] www.gaomei.com.tw/about-gaomei/gaomei-wetland/ |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on May 6, 2023 9:32:44 GMT
Pictorial cancel of Taichung Park in Taichung City with matching stamp.  [Date of cancellation: 16 February 2023.] Established in 1903 under the Japanese rule, this urban park has an artificial lake at the centre of which two adjacent pavilions stand. These pavilions were built to commemorate the completion of the Taiwan Trunk Railway in 1908, and are today landmarks of Taichung. They were under renonvation when I biked through there.  |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on May 7, 2023 13:04:01 GMT
Pictorial cancel of Changhua Confucius Temple (彰化孔廟) in Changhua.  [Date of cancellation: 16 February 2023.] Built in 1726 in the Zhangzhou School style (漳州, found in southern China), this complex is dedicated to Confucius. I got there too late at night, so could only peer into the courtyard from the side. This is the main gate:  |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on May 8, 2023 9:24:36 GMT
Pictorial cancel of Lukang Longshan Temple (鹿港龍山寺) in Lukang, Changhua.  [Date of cancellation: 17 February 2023.] This Buddhist temple complex dedicated to Guanyin dates back to 1738 and was 'divided out' (分靈, please see my previous post) of the Jinjian Longshan Temple in Fujian province, China. It is the largest of the 5 Longshan Temples existing in Taiwan, and is one of the best-preserved architecture built during the Qing rule.  [Source: here.] It's known for its exquisite woodcarvings, stone sculptures and mural paintings.        |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on May 9, 2023 9:28:39 GMT
Pictorial cancel of Guishan Island in Toucheng Township, Yilan.  [Date of cancellation: 2 March 2023.] This volcanic island is right off the coast of Toucheng, and is a popular touristic attraction for surfing. The following accompanying stamp depicts a traditional celebration held on the last day of July (lunar calendar) in Toucheng, Yilan, called 'Chiang Ku' (lit. 'robbing orphans', with orphans denoting the wandering ghosts and lonely spirits). This tradition was observed in southern Fujian of Ancient China and Vietnam. In Taiwan, it can be traced to the mid-19th century.  According to Taiwanese / Southern Fijian tradition, July of the lunar calendar is the 'Ghost Month'. On the 1st of July, the Gate of the Underworld is opened, so that lonely spirits and wild ghosts can visit the realm of the livings and receive offerings. Then on the 30th of July, the Gate is closed, and ghosts return to the underworld. During this month, many people in southern China and Taiwan don't marry / celebrate birthdays / move / etc., for fear of bringing lonely souls and wild ghosts into their home. As a result of this folk belief, various rituals are held during the month of July (for instance, the 'Pudou' ritual held on the 15th, which is more or less equivalent to Japan's 'Obon' Festival) to transmute and absolve the suffering of the ghosts (the deceased). These ghosts are the deceased without descendants or whose descendants did not pay tribute to them after they died. As they are believed to be hungry and thirsty, some may still linger in the realm of the livings even when they are supposed to return to the underworld. Therefore, on the last day of July, the activity 'Chiang Ku' is held, during which the livings rob the deceased off their offerings to make the latter return to the underworld. Today, in Toucheng, the whole event typically unfolds as follows: Participants compete in teams of 5; each team is assigned a tall pole which they scramble to climb up using ropes. The poles are covered with butter to make climbing difficult. The first team to cut off the flag erected on the top of the poles is the winner. If my description sounds unclear, here is a documentary showing the event and the preparation period the participants have to undergo: 'Miniature' of the poles displayed at the Lanyang Museum. The actual poles in real life are 8-stories high:  |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 16, 2023 11:55:18 GMT
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 18, 2023 13:38:14 GMT
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 19, 2023 16:02:07 GMT
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 20, 2023 17:08:23 GMT
Church of St. Joseph in Taimali Township, Taitung, is a Catholic church built in the Paiwan (indigenous) style.  [Date of cancellation: 24 February 2023.]  'KIOKAI NI SANTO YOSEF' is the name of the church pronounced in Paiwan language. The main entrance is decorated with the headdress of the tribe's leader. There are also wooden totems and exquisite carvings with aboriginal characteristics.   Inside the church, the statues are said to be dressed in Paiwan traditional costumes, so that people who come to worship can feel a sense of belonging. Sadly, I didn't take any photo of the interior. |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 21, 2023 17:31:46 GMT
This cancel shows the Su'ao Port located in Su'ao Township, Yilan. The stamp shows Su'ao Lighthouse, located on the other side of the port, represented in the cancel by a small dot on the hill.  [Date of cancellation: 1 March 2023.] Su'ao Port seen from atop of a hill: the lighthouse is the white point indicated by the red arrow.  I find it too bad that there was no pictorial cancel of the most famous scenery in this area: Qingshui Cliff that is 800 m above the sea level, the highest coastal cliff in Taiwan. It's part of the mountain that rises to over 2000 m directly from the Pacific Ocean, forming a spectacular view. It can be accessed by the old Suhua Highway that winds along the coastline. It's considered to be a very scenic highway but it's also narrow and known to have many accidents in the past before the new highway that passes through more tunnels was constructed. Here are a few photos I took while cycling along Suhua Highway:    |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 22, 2023 14:47:37 GMT
The current pictorial cancel offered by Alishan Post Office has at least 8 predecessors. See also: Maxicards of Alishan Railway. I previously shared different pictorial cancels offered by Alisha Post Office through the years. Here are some images with matching stamps. As the highest post office in Taiwan, Alishan ('Mount Ali') Post Office is located at 2170 m above the sea level, at the entrance to Alishan mountain resort. The post office was established in 1907 during the Japanese rule, 4 years prior to the inauguration of the Alishan railway. Alishan is known for its 'cloud sea' (雲海) and sunrise.  [Date of cancellation: 10 March 2023.] There was no cloud at the time of my visit, but the sunset and sunrise were clearly visible.   The railway developped during the Japanese rule was originally used for logging. It now operates to carry tourists running up to Alishan's lookout areas.     |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 23, 2023 15:23:13 GMT
Constructed in 1884 during the Qing rule, the North Gate (北門) or Cheng'en Gate (承恩門) in Taipei City is the only gate of the Walls of Taipei that has preserved its original design. Its design is a 2-story closed blockhouse, the roof is a single eaves and heavy ridge gable roof (單簷重脊歇山式屋頂) that can be commonly seen in traditional Taiwanese architecture.  [Date of cancellation: 14 March 2023.]   |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 24, 2023 17:32:00 GMT
The Presidential Office Building in Taipei is a Neo-Renaissance-style architecture built between 1912 and 1919 during the Japanese rule. It was mainly designed by architects Matsunosuke (森山松之助, 1869 - 1949) Moriyama and Uheiji Nagano (長野宇平治, 1867 - 1937), both were students of Kingo Tatsuno (辰野金吾, 1854 - 1919). The building's architectural style was influenced by European historicism, which dominated architecture for large buildings in the 19th century.  [Date of cancellation: 14 March 2023.] |
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dorincard
Member
Posts: 1,622 
What I collect: My focus is on Wild Mammals on maximum cards. Occasionally, I get or create maximum cards with other animals, or any other topic.
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Post by dorincard on Jun 25, 2023 1:53:55 GMT
Linda, this thread is awesome, too!
You should write philatelic articles for our Maximaphily Journal (Terry), American Topical Association, etc.
I have promoted now this thread and forum in several philatelic groups on Facebook, including Chinese Taipei Maximaphily, Hualien Taiwan Philately, etc.
Linda, you are a prolific writer, among other areas of prolificity (math, art drawing, cross-country bicycling, etc.)!
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 25, 2023 11:59:45 GMT
dorincard -- Thank you for your compliment, I am flattered  In writing these posts, I was simply summarising information I had read in Mandarin, which can be hard to find in the English speaking world. I don't find myself particularly 'creative' to be qualified as an author. I don't know if anything I posted in this thread can be adapted for Terry's maximaphily journal -- most of these cancels are on a piece of white paper, the subject of which still needs to be drawn, not on a postcard. But if you see something that would interest American readers, please let me know. I would make effort at writing something suitable. I have accumulated a huge pile of these drawing papers for Taiwan:  Another pile for Japan. And I haven't even finished drawing Hegel, Holderlin, and Schiele from my 2019 Europe tour ... I am a huge procrastinator!
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 25, 2023 15:50:59 GMT
Longtan Lake or Longtan Tourist Pond (龍潭觀光大池) is an artificial body of water located in Taoyuan. At its centre is a Buddhist-Confucianist-Taoist 'three-in-one' temple (Eastern version of trinity I guess?  ) founded in 1972, Longtan Nantian Temple. The first floor is dedicated to the saints in Confucianism; the second floor to Buddhist Bodhisattva; and the third floor to Taoist deities. 
[Date of cancellation: 16 March 2023.] Geographically, Taoyuan is located on a tableland characterised by short and rapid rivers that are inadequate for retaining rainwater. So to store freshwater supplies to irrigate the farmlands, farmers have known since the 18th century (during the Qing rule) to build ponds in the lower strata of the tableland. By the early 20th century (during the Japanese rule), there were in this area 27,000 hectares of arable land, accompanied by 8,000 manmade ponds covering an area of 8,000 hectares. [1] Today, due to an improved canal irrigation system that was later built and the decline of agriculture in face of urban expansion, the number of ponds in Taoyuan dropped to 2,851 in 2011. [1] Despite this decline, the density of manmade ponds in Taoyuan is still the highest on the entire island of Taiwan. See also (in Mandarin): I didn't pay specific visit to this pond that features on the stamp and the cancel, but when cycling across this area, I did see a lot of ponds scattering around in the countryside.    ____________________ [1] tia100.azurewebsites.net/culture.html |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 26, 2023 12:01:14 GMT
 [Date of cancellation: 16 March 2023.] Taoyuan's Lalashan Giant Tree Forest (拉拉山巨木區) located at 1500-2130 meters above the sea level in the cloud forest belt is a precious natural wonder in that only 1% of the global woodland consists of cloud forests [1]. Having narrowly escaped various human activities including logging (a fate that Alishan's cypress forest didn't escape) throughout the history of colonisation, this forest has preserved Taiwan's primitive forest appearance with 24 naturally grown giant trees -- most of them red cypress expcept one -- ranging from 500 to 1495 year-old in age. The stamp and the cancel show the giant tree No.18 that is formed by two red cypresses. It's the tallest and widest of all, and the second oldest (1214 year-old) in this forest. [2] ____________________ [1] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_forest[2] news.ltn.com.tw/news/life/breakingnews/4267765 |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jun 27, 2023 11:28:44 GMT
I am not sure what to write about Caota Sand Dunes Geopark (草漯沙丘地質公園) in Taoyuan, because there is a nice presentation pamphlet prepared by the Taoyuan government with English translation already.  [Date of cancellation: 16 March 2023.]  Stretching about 8.1 kilometers and spanning over an area of 284 hectares [1], Caota is the tallest and widest coastal dune in northern Taiwan that has not been damaged by human activities. Caota Sand Dunes are continuously formed the following way: Along the river flows, the sediments are transported to the estuary by the northeast monsoon in the winter. The coastline in this area forms an angle of 22.5° to the northeast monsoon, this characteristic provides an excellent environment for sand particles to accumulate on the coast and gradually form large dunes parallel to the coast.  Sand dunes are not permanent deposits; their dynamic topography changes with the surrounding environment like the direction of the wind. Every visit will bring a different view. ____________________ [1] www.tyoca.gov.tw/%E6%B5%B7%E5%B2%B8%E4%BF%9D%E8%82%B2/%E8%8D%89%E6%BC%AF%E6%B2%99%E4%B8%98/ |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jul 3, 2023 14:12:13 GMT
This stamp / postmark due celebrates another manmade pond in Taoyuan: Bade Pond Ecology Park. For a brief presentation on manmade ponds in Taoyuan, please see my previous post.  [Date of cancellation: 16 March 2023.] |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jul 4, 2023 16:58:35 GMT
Constructed in 1983, Taichung Port Lighthouse (台中港燈塔) in Taichung is the only lighthouse in Taiwan that was built on the top of a building. At 62.6 meter, it's the tallest lighthouse in Taiwan.  [Date of cancellation: ? March 2023.] This lighthouse is located within the industrial zone of Taichung Port, which is not open to the general public. This is a photo of it taken from Wikipedia:  [Source: Wikipedia] The construction of Taichung Port was initiated during the Japanese rule, but due to the many delays caused by WWII and the Chinese Civil War, it only came to a state of completion in 1983. Before that, another lighthouse nearby, Gaomei Lighthouse (near Gaomei Wetland), was in temporary operation. The lighting equipment used by Tahichung Port Lighthouse today was moved from Gaomei Lighthouse. This is Gaomei Lighthouse as seen from Gaomei Wetland:  |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jul 5, 2023 20:15:22 GMT
The Taichung Mosque is one of the ten mosques in Taiwan. It was built in 1990 in Taichung.  [Date of cancellation: 2 February 2023.] |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
|
Post by Linda on Jul 6, 2023 18:02:54 GMT
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
|
Post by Linda on Jul 7, 2023 15:30:55 GMT
Changhua Roundhouse just celebrated its centenary in 2022. Built during Japanese rule, this building with a semicircular shape for storing steam locomotives is the only surviving railway roundhouse in Taiwan.  [Date of cancellation: 15 March 2023.] |
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Linda
Member
Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,426
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
|
Post by Linda on Jul 8, 2023 15:00:12 GMT
Changhua Ecology Education Centre surrounded by large windmills was inaugurated in 2019. Designed by the Japanese architect Shigeru Sakamoto (坂元卯) of the Elephant Design Group (象設計集団), the building complex's wavy shape was said to be inspired from white dolphins (Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin native to Taiwan's west coastline) swimming in the sea. That's why this centre is also nicknamed 'White Dolphin House'.  [Date of cancellation: 15 March 2023.] |
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) founded in 1972, Longtan Nantian Temple. The first floor is dedicated to the saints in Confucianism; the second floor to Buddhist Bodhisattva; and the third floor to Taoist deities.
