China and Poland jointly issued a set of special stamps on Tuesday in Beijing with one piece representing a Chinese gold cup and the other a Polish silver cup.

 

The Chinese cup is an imperial gold ware in the regime of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty in the 18th century. The cup, which was used in important worship ceremonies in the past, is embedded with dozens of pearls and rubies.

 

"The characters engraved on the cup mean everlasting integrity and stability of the territory," said Li Guohua, deputy director of China's State Post Bureau.

 

The Polish cup is a silver beer cup in the 17th century with delicate relief design of the story of Joseph from the Bible.

 

A first-day-issue ceremony was also held on the same day in Poland. Maciei Barcz, deputy director of Polish Post, said that the stamps would have 800,000 sets issued in Poland.

 

Chinese postal official said the number of sets to be issued will depend on the market demand in China and be disclosed half a year later.

 

(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2006)