On the 1st of July, 1921, a direct aerial service was inaugurated between Pekin and Tsinan; it was however, suspended on the 10th of the same month, after an irregular service. Later, a service was started between Pekin and Pehtaiho, the summer resort. This service operated intermittently until the close of the summer season. A special set of five stamps was prepared for the new Air service, but very few of them were used for what they were intended for. The values are 15c., 30c., 45c., 60c. and 90c.

The design shows an aeroplane passing over the Great Wall of China (Type 9). The stamps were engraved and printed by the Chinese Bureau of Engraving and Printing at Pekin. The sheets, each consisting of 25 stamps, were printed on white wove paper, each stamp measuring 31½x41 mm. Perforation 12, No watermark.

A special obliterating chop was prepared and used on the mails taken on the first flight. The chop was rectangular in shape and consisted of twenty Chinese characters, which meant: “the first Air-Mail delivery in the Republic of China.”

During 1922 the stock of 2c. stamps suddenly ran out. The Post Office at that time had rather a large number of 3c. stamps in stock, so they decided to surcharge a certain quantity of the 3c. stamps with a red surcharge, and to use them provisionally as 2c. stamps. This surcharging was done by the Chinese Bureau of Engraving and Printing at Pekin.

Two slight errors may be found in the surcharge. Both occur in the Chinese character to the left of ” Cts.,” which is to be found broken either at the left-hand side of the oblong portion, or in the left “leg.”

The third main general Republican issue appeared in 1923. The designs of the stamps are the same as those of the 1913 and 1915 issues. The stamps, however, were entirely re-drawn and much of the detail omitted. The following are the chief points of difference between the 1915 issue and the re-drawn 1923 issue: In the ½c. to 10c., the shading lines of the arabesques and pearls above the top of the Chinese inscription have been removed; the waves in front of the junk have been altered, and the water is made to appear darker; and the inner shadings at the top and along the sides of the picture have been cut away. In the 13c. to 50c., the heads of rice now have fine shading lines, instead of appearing as coarse dots; five pearls in a row have been introduced each side of the Chinese inscription; the arabesques above the inscription have been altered; and the temple is made to stand out much more clearly. In the $1-$20, the centres are in colour, instead of being printed in black; there are four instead of eight vertical lines each side of the picture; and the trees each side of the Pai-lou are now bare of their foliage.

Many of the colours of the stamps were revised (in accordance with the Postal Notification of 1919).

The stamps are unwatermarked, and are perforated 14. The ½c.-50c. were printed in sheets of 200 stamps, and the $1-$20 in sheets of 50. (The 1c., 4c. and 10c. were issued in sheets of 140, the 2c. in sheets of 160 stamps, and the 5c. in sheets of 180, for a short period only. These sheets, however, were marked off in rows of twos, so it is presumed that these stamps were printed to make up into booklets, but were issued to various post offices in error.)

The $5, $10 and $20 stamps were withdrawn in July, 1925. At the same time, the Post Office issued a new set of stamps for use on money orders only, the denominations being I, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50c., $1, $2, $5, $10, $20 and $50. The colours are the same as those of the ordinary stamps (the $50 being grey), the design being a pagoda. These stamps, however, are not on sale to the public.

In 1926 the colour of the 4c. stamp was changed from grey to bronze-green. At the same time the paper seems to have been changed from smooth surfaced wove paper to a chalky paper that tends to absorb the ink. Thus the new paper of the 2c. green stamp has a yellow tinge, and the paper of the 10c. blue stamp has a bluish tinge. The redrawing of the designs and the printing were done by the Chinese Bureau of Engraving and Printing at Pekin

The complete issue was overprinted for use in Sinkiang, with the same surcharge as used in 1917. The set, up to $5, was also punched with the four Chinese characters for official use. In 1926 the new 4c. bronze-green stamps were overprinted, and replaced the 4c. grey stamps as they were used up.

In 1923 a Commemorative issue appeared, commemorating the tenth year of the Republic, the design being a reproduction of the Temple of Heaven (Type 10). The set comprised four stamps, 1c., 3c , 4c. and 10c.
stamps-china-republic-issues-fig10
Each stamp measures 28×34 mm., the perforation being 14, 14½. Each sheet, composed of 100 stamps, was printed on wove paper. The Chinese Bureau of Engraving and Printing was responsible for the engraving and printing.

The four stamps were also surcharged for use in Sinkiaug. This surcharge is easily missed, three of the Chinese characters being down one side of the stamp, the other two down the other side, the characters being smaller than those usually used on the Sinkiang surcharge.

During 1923 the postal tariff was again altered. Under the old tariff the 4c. stamp had been greatly used, so the stock of these stamps was large. However, under the new tariff the 3c. stamp was in great demand. To rid themselves of their large stock of 4c. stamps the Post Office had them surcharged in red, reducing their value to 3c. The stamps were surcharged by the Chinese Bureau of Engraving and Printing in sheets of 200 and 120. The surcharge is to be found inverted; and the top bar of the Chinese character at left of “Cts.” is missing on one stamp in the sheet of 200. (This error was corrected later.)