The 20th Century Stamp Series 1


C1727a "I am a cat" by Natsume Soseki	C1727b "Little Master" by Natsume Soseki	C1727c "Tangled Hair" by Yosano Akiko	C1727d First Permanent Cinema (1903)

C1727e Tramcar Introduced (1903)	C1727f Otojirou & Sadayakko	C1727g Western Fashion	C1727h Sumo Stadium Built in Ryogoku (1909)

	C1727i Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905)	C1727j Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905)

Issue	The 20th Century Stamp Series 1
Date of Issue	23 August 1999 (Heisei 11)
Denominations	50 yen x 2: (C1727a, 1727b) 80 yen x 8: (C1727c-1727j)
Quantity	7,000,000 copies each (7,000,000 sheets)
Designs	C1727a: "I am a cat"	C1727b: "Little Master"
	C1727c: "Tangled Hair"	C1727d: Cinema (1903)
	C1727e: Tramcar (1903)	C1727f: Otojirou & Sadayakko
	C1727g: Western Fashion	C1727h: Sumo Stadium (1909)
	C1727i: Russo-Japanese War	C1727j: Russo-Japanese War
Image Area	C1727a: 28.05 x 36.5 mm	C1727b: 28.05 x 36.5 mm
	C1727c: 28.05 x 36.5 mm	C1727d: 28.05 x 33.5 mm
	C1727e: 28.05 x 36.5 mm	C1727f: 25.0 x 33.5 mm
	C1727g: 28.05 x 36.5 mm	C1727h: 28.05 x 36.5 mm
	C1727i: 25.0 x 36.5 mm	C1727j: 25.0 x 36.5 mm
Pringing	Photogravure in 6 colours
Sheet	A sheet of ten stamps (Picture of the sheet)
Design	Morita Motoharu (Public Service Stamp Designer)
First Day of Issue Postmark	Tokyo Central Post Office

Japanese Stamp Specialzed Catalog (JSCA) & SAKURA catalog numbers are adopted.

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(Small Notes for the Issue)

A sheet of ten stamps consisting of two 50 yen and eight 80 yen stamps was issued to commemorate the 20th century. This is the first one of the series of 17 issues.

C1727a: "Wagahai-wa neko-dearu (I am a cat)," a novel by Natsume Soseki (1867-1916) published in 1905.
C1727b: "Botchan (Little master)," also a novel by Natsume Soseki (1867-1916) published in 1906.
C1727c: "Midare-gami (Tangled hair)," a book of Tanka poems by Yosano Akiko (1878-1942) published in 1901.
C1727d: "Denkikan" was the first permanent cinema in Japan, which was opened in 1903 at Asakusa, a fashionable downtown of the time in Tokyo.
C1727e: "Chin-chin densha (Tramcar)" was introduced in Japan for the first time in August 1903 between Shinagawa and Shinbashi. The name "Chin-chin (ting-a-ling)" was taken from the departure bell.
C1727f: Kawakami Otojirou and Kawakami Sadayakko were pioneers of the western theatrical movement in Japan.
C1727g: "Haikara (high-collar)" symbolized the Western fashion newly introduced in Japan and also the fashionable people were called by the word.
C1727h: Ryogoku Kokugikan (Sumo wrestling stadium) was founded in 1909 in the garden of Ekou-in Temple in Ryougoku, Tokyo. The building was, however, burnt down by the fires of the Tokyo Earthquake of 1923 and World War II.
C1727i-1727j: Russo-Japanese War was the one between Imperial Japan and Imperial Russia from 8 February 1904 to 5 September 1905 for control over Korea and Manchuria, China. The stamps depict the parts from "The Picture of the Activities of Imperial Japanese Red-Cross Field Hospital Tending the Wounded during the Russo-Japanese War."