Oh, the art we will see with Vietnam’s 2024 stamp program! This is one country that I hotly await the issues. It’s not just the art, it’s the celebration of Vietnamese history and culture that is so captivating and enticing. Each time I see a new issue, I get the urge to hop a plane and visit. VietPost’s stamps are some of Vietnam’s best cultural ambassadors.
I did something different this year with the preliminary program. First, I actually found it for a change. Nice to have a head start on the year. Instead of just running it through Google Translate and hoping for the best, I pulled up a dictionary and took time translating it. I’ve already begun to recognise key phrases and words, so the trick was to pull together a coherent listing. It was exciting to do. There will be adjustments and corrections, but I’m pretty happy with the list below. I’ve been trying to learn bits of the language, so the write ups are a little less stilted, and flow. As great as it is to have an automatic translator at our fingertips, they just translate the words, not the spirit of the writings.
This year Vietnam will be releasing another Fairy Tale/Folk Tale stamp. Nguyễn Du’s 2022 set in the Fairy Tale series told the story of the Star Fruit Tree. It’s the story of a good brother and greedy brother and is told in a graphic novel style.
Of all the stamps I see, day after day, this is still the standout series for me. It goes down as one of the top 10 stamps/sets of all times. And yes, I’ve been working on a list. Regardless of the time that goes by, this one keeps its place on the list. You can read more about it here: Fairytales from Vietnam – starfruit tree | Bitter Grounds Magazine. The new set is titled Vietnamese Fairy tales: Hundred-knot Bamboo Tree. I’m not going to spoil it or you, so you’ll have to wait until June to learn more. Yea, I’m 100 kinds of excited to see this series return.
Flora collectors will be treated to a couple issues, including Hanoi has 12 Flower Seasons and Tea Trees. This will be a nice follow up to last year’s Purple Phoenix by Nguyễn Quang Vinh
Precious Wood by Phạm Trung Hà
and Nguyễn Quang Vinh’s Orchid extravaganza that included booklet covers, souvenir info sheets, maxis, and stamps.
Not listed below are 5 commemorative stamps, 4-character commemoratives and one 1 event/celebration. No dates or details were given in the calendar. But that should flesh out the year nicely.
Don’t miss the write up on this year’s Tết stamps. Although released the tail end of 2023, they are the celebration that starts the 2024. Vietnam’s 2024 Tết stamps celebrating the dragon.
Enjoy,
Catpaw
February
Love
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, maxi card, booklet
Designer: Nguyễn Quang Vinh.
Release date: February 14, 2024
March
Celebrating the 1100th Birth Anniversary of King Đinh Tiên Hoàng (924-979)
1 stamp, FDC, cancel
offset
Dinh Tien Hoang (924-979), known as Dinh Bo Linh, was born in Kim Lu village, Dai Huu village, Dai Huang continent (now in Van Bong village, Gia Phuong commune, Gia Vien district, Ninh Binh province). He was instrumental in suppressing the rebellion of 12 armies and unifying Jiangshan. In 968, he ascended the throne, proclaimed himself Dai Thang Minh Emperor, gave the national name Dai Co Viet, moved Kinh Hamlet to Hoa Lu (Ninh Binh), and began to build a new capital.
Dinh Tien Hoang was the emperor who laid the foundation for founding the first unified centralized feudal state in Vietnam. He also issued the country’s first coin: the “Thai Binh Hung Bao” coin. 1100th anniversary of the birth of Emperor Ding Tien (924-979) (vietnamstamp.com.vn)
Designer: Nguyễn Du
Release date: March 22, 2024
April
Hanoi has 12 Flower Seasons
4 stamps, souvenir sheet, 4 FDCs, cancel
Designer: Nguyễn Quang Vinh
Release date: April 26, 2024
May
Celebrating the 70th anniversary of the victory over Điện Biên Phủ (1954-2024)
4 stamps, FDC, cancel, 4 maxi cards
Designer: Nguyễn Du
Release date: May 5, 2024
Tea Trees
2 stamps, 1 souvenir sheet, 2 FDCs, 2 maxi cards, cancel
offset
Tea trees – perennial bushes or small trees and white and yellowish flowers. a
Tea in Vietnam: How its types and culture are (vietnamdrive.com)
Designer: Nguyễn Du
Release date: May 21, 2024 (World Tea Day)
Celebrating the 200th Anniversary of the Completion of Vĩnh Tế Canal (1824-2024)
1 stamp, FDC, cancel
offset
The 87-kilometre-long (54 mi) canal runs through the Mekong Delta. This site has a brief, but interesting history of the canal.
Designer: Nguyễn Du
Release date: May 28, 2024
June
Fairy Tale: Hundred-knot Bamboo Tree
4 stamps, souvenir sheet, 4 maxi cards, 2 FDCs, cancel
offset
For International Children’s Day
VNPost is back with another in their fantastic Fairy Tale series. Similar to 2023’s story, this one also reflects on greed, deceit and honesty. The different scenes of the story are played out on both the stamps and the maxi cards.
In the old days, there was a poor, gentle, hardworking boy who worked for him with the promise of marrying his daughter 3 years later. When the appointment came, he turned around and demanded that he find a hundred-knot bamboo to fulfill his promise. The boy went to the forest to look for a hundred-knot bamboo but couldn’t find any, so he sat and cried. The Buddha appeared, told him to find a hundred bamboo burners and taught him the mantra “Stick together! Stick together” to bind the bamboo burners; “Unstick! Unstick” to separate the bamboo.Returning to the village, seeing that Phu Ong was organizing a wedding for his daughter with someone else, the boy showed Phu Ong the bamboo stems and read a mantra that made Phu Ong be sucked into the bamboo. It was only when the rich man agreed to keep his promise that he read the mantra to release him. In the end, the poor boy and his daughter live together happily ever after.
Fairy Tale: The Hundred-Burned Bamboo (vietnamstamp.com.vn)
Here’s a longer version of the story: The Hundred-Knot Bamboo (vietnam-culture.com)
Designer: Lê Khánh Vương
Vuong designed two previous stamps for VietNam, Stilt House of Hồ Chí Minh (2023) and the National Year of Digital Data (2023).
Release date: June 1, 2024
July
National Treasures: Pottery
4 stamps, FDC, cancel, 4 maxi cards
offset
- Full Moon Head ceramic / Đầu Rằm ceramic vase from the Phung Nguyen Culture, dating back 3,000 years. Housed at the Quang Ninh Provincial Museum.
- Long Thanh pottery vases – 18 objects dating to the Sa Huynh Civilisation between the 1st and 2nd century CE. Housed in the Quang Ngai General Museum.
- NhonThanh pottery vase – from the Oc Eo Civilisation from the 1st to 7th centuries CE. Housed in the Can Tho Museum.
- brown flower ceramic – lotus flower pattern – from the Tran Dynasty of the 13th to 14th century CE. Housed in the Vietnam National Museum of History in Hanoi.
Introducing the ‘National Treasure: Pottery’ stamp set (baochinhphu.vn)
New stamps depict national ceramic treasures | Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus)
Designer: Nguyễn Du
Release date: July 28, 2024
August
ASEAN- Association of Southeast Asian Nations
1 stamp, FDC, cancel, maxi card
offset
Designer: Nguyễn Du
Release date: August 8, 2024
September
150th Anniversary of the World Postal Union (1874-2024)
1 stamp in booklets of 10, FDC, cancel
offset
You can read a bit more on the UPU here
Designer: Lê Khánh Vương
Release date: September 10, 2024
October
Celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Liberation of the Capital, Hanoi (10/10/1954-10/10/2024)
1 stamp, souvenir sheet, FDC, maxi card
offset
This page, 70 years after Hanoi Liberation: Remembering Victory Day, covers this year’s anniversary celebrations. It includes memories from people who were there. In English, fascinating.
Archival documents showcase victorious army taking over the capital
Designer: Nguyễn Quang Vinh
Release date: October 10, 2024
Dogs /Chó
4 stamps, FDC, 4 maxi cards, cancel
offset
This set is a celebration of 4 dogs indigenous to Vietnam.
- Chó Bắc Hà – native to the Bắc Hà region. Noted for its hunting and guarding abilities with the Hmong people
- Chó Sông Mã – also called a Lài and called a river horse dog. Known for their quick intelligence, fierce loyalty and strong willed hunter.
- Chó H’Mông cộc đuôi – H’Mông bobtail dog known as hunters, herding dogs and good guard dogs. They are as police and military dogs.
- Chó Phú Quốc – a ridgeback, one of 3 known breeds of ridgeback dogs in the world. Fast running hunting dogs, good guard dogs and prized for their strong swimming abilities. They have blue tongues and webbed feet.
Designer: Nguyễn Du
Release date: October 11, 2024
November
Celebrating the 100th Birth Anniversary of Phan Huỳnh Điểu (1924-2015)
1 stamp, FDC, cancel
offset
Composer from the Vietnamese Revolution era, known as the “Golden Bird of Vietnamese Music” / Con chim vàng của nền âm nhạc Việt Nam
Designer:Phạm Quang Diêu and Lê Khánh Vương
Release date: November 11, 2024
December
Tết Ất Tỵ Year of the Snake
2 stamps, 1 stamp on souvenir sheet, 2 FDCs, 2 maxi cards, cancel
offset
2 stamps, souvenir sheet
Designer: Nguyễn Quang Vinh
Release date: December 1, 2024
Celebrating the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Vietnam People’s Army (22/12/1944-22/12/2024)
and the 35th anniversary of the National Defense Day (22/12/1989-22/12/2024)”
4 stamps, FDC, cancel
offset
Designer: Nguyễn Du
Release date: December 18, 2024
Celebrating the 100th Birth Anniversary of Nguyễn Đình Thi (1924-2003)
1 stamp, FDC, cancel
Poet, writer, composer
Designer: Nguyễn Du with help of Vietnam Museum of Literature
Release date: December 20, 2024
Celebrating the 300th Birth Anniversary of Famous Physician Lê Hữu Trác (1724-1791)
1 stamp, FDC, cancel
Designer: Nguyễn Phú Cường Nguyen Phu Cuong
Release date: December 30, 2024
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