Background Informations:
On February 23, 2008, China National Philatelic Corporation issued a set of two first-day covers "Jing Roles in Peking Opera", carrying one set of six special stamps with a total face value of 6.80yuan. The pictures on the stamps are Peking opera characters: Xu Yanzhao, Bao Zheng, Lian Po, Zhang Fei, Cao Cao and Yang Yansi.
As a type of roles in Peking opera, jing mainly refers to all the other male characters except sheng and chou. Usually coming with colorful facial makeup, jing is also known as "painted face", and the roles are subdivided into zhengjing (principal), fujing (secondary) and wujing (military). The principal painted-face roles are devoted more to singing, with heroic bearing and stunning singing, recitation and acting. The secondary painted-face roles stress acting apart from singing and recitation skills, and the characters can be brave heroes or crafty sycophants. The military painted-face focuses on acting and acrobatic fighting, rather than singing. It is the most eye-catching in a Peking opera performance.
