At the closing ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, the Olympic Flag will be symbolically handed over to London, who will host the Games in 2012.
Stampset from UK
To mark this historic event, Royal Mail and China Post have joined forces to produce a joint stamp issue featuring four stamps celebrating the historical and modern architecture of each city. The UK stamps are available in a miniature sheet.
Stampset from PRC
The Miniature Sheet will go on sale in the UK on the 22 August, while their Chinese counterparts, featuring the same images, will go on sale in China two days later on the day of the handover ceremony.
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London Eye: An iconic part of the capital’s skyline, the London Eye is the biggest Ferris wheel in Europe. Designed by architectural practice Marks Barfield, it has become the most popular paid-for tourist attraction in the UK. Since it opened in 2000, 3 million people a year have enjoyed breathtaking views of the capital from its 32 air-conditioned capsules.
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Corner Tower, Forbidden City: The home of the Emperor and his family for over five centuries, the Forbidden City was given its name as traditionally no one could enter or leave it without the Emperor’s express permission. Consisting of over 980 buildings over 720,000 sq metres, the Forbidden City was the ceremonial and political heart of the Chinese government until the establishment of the People’s Republic of China. Today, it houses countless artefacts and works of art in the Palace Museum.
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Tower of London: The Tower of London is perhaps best known as an impenetrable prison and the site of royal intrigue. It is said that the ghosts of Anne Boleyn and Lady Jane Grey, who were beheaded at the Tower, still roam its ancient halls. However, the tower has not always been a place of dread and fear. Built by William the Conqueror in 1078 to protect the city from invaders, it has been used as a royal residence, an observatory, a zoo, a mint, an armoury, and perhaps most famously, as home to the priceless Crown Jewels.
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National Stadium, Bejing: Nicknamed the Bird’s Nest due to its unique steel mesh architecture, the recently-completed National Stadium will host the majority of the track and field events during the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies. Designed by the Pritzker Prize winning Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron, the enormous structure can seat 100,000 spectators.
(royalmail.com)
