12p Rat, Close-up
45p Rat, Full-body
Miniature Sheets of 8 (Four Se-tenant Pairs) With Gold Foil
Stamping (6,250)
200p - Souvenir Sheets of One -
4,000
Graphic Artist: Rodine C. Teodoro
First Day Covers:
Manila
2020 YEAR OF THE RAT (Chinese New Year)
2020 is a year of the Rat,
starting from January 25th, 2020 and lasting until February 11th,
2021. It will be a Metal Rat year. In 2021, a year of the Ox will
follow.
The Year of the Rat is the
first zodiac sign in the Chinese zodiac cycle. According to the
Chinese zodiac story, in the competition held by the Jade Emperor to
decide the zodiac animals, the quick-witted rat asked the diligent
ox to take him on a ride to cross the river and jumped down before
the ox crossed the finish line, so the rat won the race and became
the first of the zodiac animals.
The 12 zodiac animals are,
in order: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat,
Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. A Rat year occurs every 12 years.
The Chinese zodiac is
associated with traditional Chinese chronology — a 60-year
calendrical cycle, which is the combination of the 12 Earthly
Branches (12 terms corresponding to 12 animals, months, and hours)
and the 10 Heavenly Stems.
According to this, the Rat
represents the Earthly Branch Zi and the midnight hours (11pm–1am).
Moreover, in terms of the Chinese Yin and Yang theory, a Rat is
Yang.
Therefore, if you were
born in January or February in one of the above years, you might be
a Rat, or possibly a Pig.
Gold Rat (1960, 2020) is
smart, talented, hot-tempered, jealous, with a strong sense of
self-awareness.
Men born in a Rat year are
very curious so they tend to try their hands at anything and they
can deal with tasks skillfully. Due to a lack of courage, as well as
good command skills, they are not capable of being leaders.
Opportunistic and picky as male Rats are, they do not have broad
minds but take a narrow view of things.
Women born in a Rat year
are pretty, smart, and lovely. They have quick minds and dexterous
hands, and are able to learn anything. They are always considerate
of their families and friends.