TAIWAN. ATM issues 2014

2014, The year of the Horse

Following the two earlier issues illustrated with the Auspicious dragon (see article >, also published in VARIABLE 26) and the Spiritual snake (article, also in VARIABLE 31), released in 2012 and 2013 respectively, in 2014 Chunghwa Post dedicated a new ATM issue to the Chinese zodiac animals, featuring the Gallant horse.

The design of the new issue is by Tseng Kai-chih. In the background, the designer has included various auspicious clouds with different shades that, according to the Chunghwa Post information, 'convey an atmosphere of auspiciousness'.
The rolls of gummed labels were manufactured by the French company Cartor Security Printing. The total production run was 900 rolls each of 1,000 labels.

As with the previous releases, all labels have a unique serial number pre-printed in the bottom left corner (ACU0216 in the upper image). This 7-digit code is made up of 3 letters, identifying the roll, and 4 digits for the label number. There is also the logo, and the name of the postal operator and country, in the bottom right corner.

According to the Chinese lunar calendar, the year of the green wood horse began on January 31st 2014, and ends on February 18th 2015.
Macau has also dedicated, in 2014, an ATM issue on the same subject - the year of the horse (see article, also published in VARIABLE 32).

The 'Gallant horse' issue was available, from August 22nd 2014, from all the Innovision vending machines in service (numbers 076 to 147) installed across the country, except for the machine number 97, which remained out of service.

On the first date of issue, all the distributors used black ink to print on the ATMs, except machine number 103, installed in the Taipei Daan post office (images below).
The Minguo or Republic of China calendar, the most widely used in the country, counts the years starting from 1911, the year of the foundation of the Republic of China. Therefore, 2014 is 103 according to the national calendar, and hence this distributor number was chosen to release the first special imprints on the new ATM design.

Between 8am and 3pm on the first day of issue, this distributor issued printed ATMs with magenta ink.

Each visitor, after a long wait, was able to use the machine for a maximum of 5 minutes.
From 3pm until 5pm, (the post office closing time), the machine printed on the ATMs using black ink.

	Chunghwa Post released a pictorial first day cover. Two special first day postmarks were available in the Hualien (left) and Taipei Sanchong (right) post offices.

Along with the ATM issue, Chunghwa Post also released 10,000 commemorative folders holding the set of 4 ATMs with international mail values (NT$ 9-13-15-17), printed in black, and another 10,000 folders with the ATMs printed in magenta. All the ATMs are printed by distributor number 103. The folders also included a set of 2 stamps and a souvenir sheet, dedicated to the same subject, plus a specimen label.

	This label is identical in design to the ATM issue, but has no face value. It is a sample label, with only the word SPECIMEN, in Chinese characters, printed in red ink in the centre of the label, and a sequential number in the bottom left corner.

	Over the following weeks, other temporary special imprints were produced using this design. On August 30th 2014, a magenta cartridge was installed in Innovision distributor 142 installed in the Guanxi post office (Hsinchu Branch 30) (right picture). A pictorial postmark was also prepared. As with the other special imprints, many collectors attracted by this temporary issue, went to the post office.

	On September 12th 2014, distributor 103 was relocated temporarily to the Taichung philatelic service centre, in the Taichung Minquan Rd. Post Office, where the machine was fitted with a green cartridge.

Many visitors, most of whom had queued overnight to be one of the 50 or so 'lucky' collectors allowed to use the machine for the maximum 5 minutes permitted (!), complained again about this restrictive policy regarding the special releases.
	On this occasion, the temporary post office staff accepted additional orders, to be printed and delivered a few weeks later.

The next special imprint was produced in December 2014, on the occasion of The 4th East Asian Stamp Exhibition. This major philatelic exhibition displayed stamp collections from Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau and China, and was held from December 19th to 22nd, in the Taipei Postal Museum.
Chunghwa Post took advantage of the opportunity with the temporary installation, in the museum premises, of five (!) Innovision distributors - numbers 100, 101, 102, 103 & 126-. All these machines issued the 'Gallant horse' design ATMs, printed in blue/violet ink.


Daily pictorial postmarks. Below, the exhibition postal mark, in magenta.


	Chunghwa Post released two types of commemorative folders, available for each one of the five machines installed in the exhibition. The 'Gallant Horse Postage Lable Folio' (right image and below) which includes two sets of 8 values, with the ATMs printed in blue/violet and black colours.

The second and much more complete, was the 'Gallant Horse Postage Lable Collection' that includes 99 ATMs (!), with all the face values from NT$1 to NT$99, printed in a blue/violet colour.
Despite its high sale price (about 150 EUR per folder !), the stock sold out in a few days.

	The last special imprint with this design was released on the occasion of the SOGO New Year Exhibition, held from December 31st 2014 to January 2nd 2015, at the SOGO shopping centre, in Zhongli, Taoyuan County.
Chunghwa Post set up a new temporary post office, equipped with the Innovision 112, but in this case the ATMs were printed using a green ink cartridge. A new commemorative folder, with 10 ATMs printed in green, was available to visitors, as well as three different pictorial postmarks, with different dates.

ROCUPEX '14 - Plum blossom

After the issue dedicated to the Chinese zodiac, the second ATM issue of 2014, in Taiwan, marks the celebration of ROCUPEX'14 TAICHUNG & R.O.C. - THAILAND STAMP EXHIBITION, the national philatelic exhibition.

This philatelic event was held at the Qiaozhong Elementary School, Tanzi District, Taichung City, from October 3rd to 7th, 2014.

The design is by Janny Pai, a young graphic artist who has designed various stamps for Chunghwa Post. The illustration features the plum blossom, the Taiwan national flower.

The rolls of gummed labels were manufactured by the French company Cartor Security Printing. The total production was 540,000 labels - 540 rolls of 1,000 labels.

The composition includes the name of the issue, in Chinese characters, in the upper left corner. Each label has a unique pre-printed serial number in the bottom left corner (AGY0215 in the upper stamp). This 7-digit code is made up of 3 letters, identifying the roll, and 4 for the label. Then there is the logo, name of the postal operator and country, in the bottom right corner.

The ROCUPEX'14 design was available, from October 3rd 2014, from all the Innovision vending machines (076 to 147), in service, at post offices across the country, except for machine 97.

During the philatelic exhibition, Chunghwa Post moved four Innovision distributors, numbers 103, 121, 122 & 123, from their usual locations to the exhibition hall (right image). These four machines used three different ink colours cartridges alternated over the 5 days of the event, providing 12 different combinations of colour / machine number.
	Always so attentive to number symbolism, one of the chosen machines was number 103, moved from the Taipei Daan post office. 103 corresponds to the year 2014, according to the national calendar, which starts with the year of foundation of the Republic of China.

	103	121	122	123
3.10.2014	magenta	green	black	magenta
4.10.2014	green	black	magenta	green
5.10.2014	black	magenta	green	magenta
6.10.2014	magenta	green	magenta	green
7.10.2014	green	magenta	green	black

	In the exhibition, Chunghwa Post set up a temporary post office where visitors could obtain both the special pictorial cover and the five daily postmarks, as well as the general exhibition postal mark (in magenta).

Chunghwa Post also put on sale special commemorative folders containing two sets of ATMs, printed in green and magenta, issued by the different machines at the exhibition.

With the collaboration of J. Chien