China FDC on "The Great Hall of the People"

First Day Cover
首日封
Sobrescrito de 1.º Dia

China


The Great Hall of the People

Date of Issue : 18 July 2009

(On the lower FDC)
2-1 : The East Gate
The East Gate is the main entrance to the Great Hall of the People, where welcome ceremonies for national guests take place while the Guard of Honor of the three services of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) is reviewed

(On the upper FDC)
2-2 : The Great Auditorium
The ceiling illumination system of the Great Auditorium has a red five-star lighting as the center, surrounded by golden sunflower petals and rays of luster, and the rest of the ceiling is dotted with more than 500 lamps shining like stars, symbolizing that people of all ethnic groups of the nation rally closely around the CPC Central Committee.

Constructed in 1959, and personally named by Chairman Mao Zedong, the Great Hall of the People covers an area of 15 hectares with a floor space of 171,800 square meters. In addition to the 10,000-seat Great Auditorium, the Banquet Hall, the conference hall of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), the building also houses 34 reception chambers named after different provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities and special administrative regions of the country. It is an important venue for the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the State government to hold political, diplomatic and social events, and there the Standing Committee of the NPC handles official business.

The year 2009 marks the 50th anniversary of the Great Hall of the People.