Traditional Children's Folk Tales Stamp

Sang Kancil and the Crocodiles

Sang Kancil is know as the smartest animal in our jungle and this is the story of how he trick the crocodiles. Wager to taste the fruits in the orchard on the other side of the river, he informed the crocodiles that Raja Sulaiman has ordered Sang Kancil to do a headcount as he wanted them to give them a gift. Sang Kancil ordered them to form a queue stretching all the way across the river. Deftly, he jumped on them until he crossed the river. Upon reaching the opposite bank of the river, he cheekily told the crocodiles that he had tricked them and that there were no gifts forthcoming from Raja Sulaiman. The crocodiles became angry and until today bear a grudge.

Sang Kancil Helps Kerbau

This tale is about an ungrateful crocodile called Sang Bedal. Trapped under a fallen tree, Sang Bedal's cries for help were heard by Sang Kerbau. Using his horns, Sang Kerbau freed the crocodile. The wily crocodile then decided to make a meal of Sang Kerbau and swiftly captured the latter's legs. During the scuffle, Sang Kancil happens to walk by and devised a way to help Sang Kerbau. Feigning disbelief, he asked Sang Kerbau to demonstrate how he removed the fallen tree off Sang Bedal. His leg freed from the crocodile, Sang Kerbau upon Sang Kancil's instruction dropped the tree back on the crocodile. The ungrateful Sang Bedal, who does not appreciate a good deed, was trapped under the tree again.

Bawang Putih Bawang Merah

Once upon a time, there was a girl named Bawang Merah who lived with her stepmother and stepsister named Bawang Putih who always abused her. One day, she heard the call of a carp fish from the well who wanted to help her. Unfortunately, her stepmother and stepsister found out. They caught the fish and cooked it. Bawang Merah's mother appeared to her in her dreams and told her about the fish. She told her Bawang Merah to bury the fish bones. Bawang Merah buried them and amazingly a tree with a golden swing grew before her eyes. One day while happily swinging on her golden swing, her melodious voice attracted the attention of a prince who was passing by and who eventually married her and they lived happily ever after.

Badang

Once there was a young man called Badang who discovered he was not able to catch any fish from the rivers for the past three days. Realising that someone was stealing his fish, he decided to keep watch. At midnight, he saw a strange form with red shinning eyes and beard that reached to its stomach emerge and it quickly devoured his fish. Badang grew angry and rushed at the creature to kill it. Pleading for its life, it promised to make Badang strong by eating the fish he threw up and ran away. Still angry, Badang grabbed a huge branch and to his amazement broke it easily. Eventually, Badang found he had great strength and used it to help the people. The King found out and appointed Badang as his warrior.

Mat Jenin

This is a story about Mat Jenin, a daydreamer. After he picked 50 coconuts and while resting comfortably on a coconut palm leaf, Mat Jenin starts to daydream. The money from selling the coconuts will be used to buy twenty chicken eggs. Once hatched, they will be sold for goats and later the goats for some cow and a horse. While riding on the horse, he met a princess and they ride the horse together. While galloping, the horse suddenly stumbles. Mat Jenin opens his eyes and found himself floating in the air on the palm leaf. He makes a safe landing and a neighbour who witnessed the incident said "Only hard work pays, daydreaming only brings disaster."

Si Tanggang

This story is about an ungrateful son called Si Tanggang and the consequences of his disloyalty to his parents. One day, Si Tanggang was captured and put to work on a ship. The Captain grew found of him and eventually made him his son-in-law, as well as the ship's captain. One day, caught in a storm, Captain Tanggang was forced to moor his ship in the village his parents lived. When they came to meet Si Tanggang, he was embarassed they looked so old and refused to acknowledge them. Saddened by the son's behaviour, his mother cried out to the heavens. Suddenly lightning, strong wind and waves tore the ship to pieces. Captain Tanggang, his wife and crew were turned to stone.



Technical Details

Date of Issue : 26-Jun-2007

Denomination : 50 sen Setenant, 30 sen Setenant

Stamp Size : 40mm x 30mm

Miniature Sheet Size : 100mm x 70mm

Stamp Size in Miniature Sheet : 50mm x 40mm

Booklet : 30 sen x 10

Perforation : 14

Sheet Content : 20 Stamps

Paper : SPM Watermarked, Phosphor Coated

Printing Process : Silver foil hotstamping & Lithography

Printer : Percetakan Keselamatan Nasional Sdn Bhd

Stamp Designer : Reign Associates Sdn Bhd

First Day Cover Value : 30 Sen

Presentation Pack Value : RM 4.50

Miniature Sheet Value : RM 5.00

Stamp Booklet Value : RM 3.00

Folder Value : RM 5.00

POS Malaysia 22 Jun 2007, Friday Press Release

TRADITIONAL CHILDREN’S FOLK TALES DEPICTED IN STAMPS AND FIRST DAY COVER

Pos Malaysia will issue a set of special stamps and First Day Cover on Traditional Children’s Folk Tales on 26 June 2007. The special stamps and First Day Cover will feature the images of famous characters in traditional children’s folk tales.

Traditional children’s folk tales form an integral part of traditional literature which should be known and enjoyed by all children. Aside from their entertainment value, these traditional folk tales will enrich their lives with the many moral values that form a big part of these stories. Through these stories, children today have the opportunity to experience the past as well as gain knowledge on the lives, beliefs and the important values of the people of the ancient times. These traditional stories which contain good motivating elements and usually illustrate a principle or value children can relate to and learn, will inspire as well as inculcate moral values that will remain with them through adulthood.

Si Tanggang, Mat Jenin, Si Badang, Bawang Putih Bawang Merah and the widely popular children’s tale on a manikin mouse deer called “Sang Kancil” are only some of the traditional children stories that are well-loved and widely known by all Malaysians.

“Children’s folk tales are an example of the enduring tradition of elders teaching the young on the importance of having strong and positive moral values through the subtle method of storytelling. The traditional folk tales have been passed on from generation to generation and until now, it is enjoyed by Malaysians of all ages,” said YBhg Dato’ Idrose Mohamed, Managing Director of Pos Malaysia.

“It is indeed a pleasure for Pos Malaysia to depict some of the most well-known traditional children’s folk tales in the form of stamps and First Day Cover and we hope that our customers will take this opportunity to add these unique stamps into their collection. Moreover, the production of these stamps supports Visit Malaysia 2007’s initiative of promoting our culture and traditions to our visitors from abroad. Thus, we would like to invite them to purchase the stamps and First Day Cover as a token of remembrance of Malaysia’s fascinating culture and tradition,” Dato’ Idrose added.

The stamps, 40mm X 30mm in size, are printed in sheets of 20 on SPM watermarked, phosphor coated paper and are available in strips of four, where each stamp denomination is 50sen featuring the following :

• Sang Kancil and the Crocodile
  Sang Kancil is known as the smartest animal in the jungle and this is the story about how he tricked the crocodiles. Eager to taste the fruits in the orchard on the other side of the river, he informed the crocodiles that Raja Sulaiman had ordered Sang Kancil to do a head count as he wanted to give them a gift. Sang Kancil ordered them to form a queue stretching until the other end of the shore. Deftly, he jumped on them until he crossed the river. Upon reaching the shore, he happily told the crocodiles that he had tricked them and there were no gifts forthcoming from Raja Sulaiman. The crocodiles became angry and until today bear a grudge.
  
• Sang Kancil Helps Kerbau
  This tale is about an ungrateful crocodile called Sang Bedal. Trapped under a tree, Sang Bedal's cries for help were heard by Sang Kerbau. Using his horns, Sang Kerbau freed the crocodile. The wily crocodile decided to make a meal of Sang Kerbau and swiftly captured the latter's leg. During the scuffle comes Sang Kancil, who cleverly devised a way to help Sang Kerbau. Feigning disbelief, he asks Sang Kerbau to demonstrate how he removed the tree off Sang Bedal. His leg freed from the crocodile, Sang Kerbau upon Sang Kancil's instructions dropped the tree back on the crocodile. The ungrateful Sang Bedal, who does not appreciate a good deed was trapped under the tree again.


• Bawang Putih Bawang Merah
  Once upon a time there was a girl named Bawang Merah who lived with her stepmother and stepsister named Bawang Putih who always abused her. One day, she heard the call of a carp fish from the well who wanted to help her. Unfortunately, her stepmother and stepsister found out. They caught the fish and cooked it. Bawang Merah's mother appeared in her dreams and told her about the fish. She told Bawang Merah to bury the fish bones. Bawang Merah buried them and amazingly, a tree attached with a golden swing grew before her eyes. One day while happily swinging on her golden swing, her melodious voice attracted the attention of a prince who eventually married her and they lived happily ever after.


• Badang
  Once there was a young man called Badang who discovered he was not able to catch any fish from the rivulet for the past three days. Realising that someone was stealing his fish, he decided to keep watch. At midnight, he saw a strange form with red shinning eyes and beard that reached to its stomach emerge and it quickly devoured his fish. Badang grew angry and rushed at the creature to kill it. Pleading for its life, it promised to make Badang strong by eating the fish he threw up and ran away. Still angry, Badang grabbed a huge branch and to his surprise, broke it easily. Eventually, Badang found he had great strength and used it to help the people. The King found out and appointed Badang as his warrior.

Another special feature of the new stamp collection is the Miniature Sheet, where the image is accented with silver hot stamping. The Miniature Sheet, 100mm x 70mm in size at RM5, features :

• Si Tanggang
  This story is about an ungrateful son called Si Tanggang and the consequences of his disloyalty to his parents. One day, Si Tanggang was captured and put to work on a ship. The Captain grew fond of him and eventually made him his son in-law as well as the ship's Captain. One day, caught in a storm, Captain Tanggang was forced to moor his ship in the village his parents lived. When they came to meet Si Tanggang, he was embarassed they looked so old and refused to acknowledge them. Saddened by her son’s behaviour, his mother cried out to the heavens. Suddenly lightning, strong wind and waves tore the ship to pieces. Captain Tanggang, his wife and crew turned into stone.

First Day Cover at 30sen each, Stamp Booklet at RM3.00 each and Presentation Pack at RM4.50 each, can be purchased at all post offices nationwide. Folders at RM5 each is only available at selected post offices.

Clock Towers Series II Stamp

Wherever in the world they may be, clock towers fascinate us and invariably become landmarks within their respective localities. From the Russian Kremlin’s Spasskaya Tower to London’s Big Ben, such towers have added aesthetical value to the landscape and skylines of cities, towns and villages across the globe. Malaysia has no shortage of these interesting and functional pieces of architecture, with many of them spread throughout the country and each with its own story to tell.

Pos Malaysia takes great pleasure in introducing more such stories in this second series on Clock Towers.

Many of Malaysia’s clock towers are of historical interest. They were built mainly during the heyday of the nation’s colonial past. Many became the most enduring aspects of the municipal buildings of which they were part. Yet others were constructed as free-standing structures, often in commemoration of an important date or event and usually located along a major thoroughfare within the town or village concerned. It was also not unusual for many of these clock towers to be built under the financial auspices of well-to-do private individuals of the Malaysian society.

The towers served their earlier purpose well, to tell time to generations of people in an era when wristwatches and house clocks were not generally the order of the day. Today, they tell of those times when they were built, when the Malaya then was dramatically different from what Malaysia has now becomes.



Technical Details

Date of Issue : 6-Jun-2007

Denomination : 30 Sen; 50 Sen; RM 1.00

Stamp Size : 30mm x 50mm

Sheet Content : 20 Stamps

Perforation : 14

Paper : SPM Watermarked, Phosphor Coated

Printing Process : Lithography

Printer : Percetakan Keselamatan Nasional Sdn Bhd

Stamp Designer : Hazel Design

First Day Cover Value : 30 Sen

Presentation Pack Value : RM 4.00

Postal Card Value : 80 Sen

Folder Value : RM 5.00




POS Malaysia 6 Jun 2007, Friday Press Release

TIMELESS COLLECTION OF MALAYSIAN CLOCK TOWERS FEATURED IN NEW STAMPS AND FIRST DAY COVER

Pos Malaysia today issued a set of special stamps and First Day Cover on “Clock Towers – Series II” on 6 June 2007. The special stamps and First Day Cover is the second series produced by Pos Malaysia and will feature the images of historical clock towers in Malaysia. YAB Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia launched the stamps during the Official Opening of SMIDEX 2007 at Kuala Lumpur Convention Center (KLCC).

Many of Malaysia’s clock towers are of historical interest. They were built mainly during the heyday of the nation’s colonial past. Many became the most enduring aspects of the colonial municipal buildings of which they were part. Yet others were constructed as free-standing structures, often in commemoration of an important date or event, and usually located along a major thoroughfare within the town or village concerned. It was also not unusual for many of these clock towers to be built under the financial auspices of well-to-do private individuals of the Malayan society.

The towers served their earlier purpose well, to tell time to generations of people in an era when wristwatches and house clocks were not generally the order of the day. Today, they tell of those times when they were built, when the Malaya then was dramatically different from what Malaysia has now become.

“The historical clock towers of Malaysia have withstood the test of time to witness the changes in the nation’s chronicle from the colonial days until the present time and it is a pleasure for Pos Malaysia to portray these historical monuments in our stamps and First Day Cover. This is a continuance of Pos Malaysia’s efforts to enhance the public’s knowledge on the history of our nation through the depiction of historical buildings in our philatelic items,” said YBhg Dato’ Idrose Mohamed, Managing Director of Pos Malaysia.

The stamps, 30mm X 50mm in size, are printed in sheets of 20 on SPM watermarked, phosphor coated paper and are available in three denominations :

• 30sen : The J.W.W Birch Memorial Clock Tower, Ipoh, Perak Darul Ridzuan
  
  This ornately constructed clock tower was built in 1909 in memory of J.W.W. Birch, the first Resident of the British colonial administration in Perak. He was assassinated in the early upsurge of Malaysian nationalism that eventually led to the nation’s freedom from colonial governance. The original presentation of the History of Civilisation around the faces of the tower, which also depicted the Prophet Muhammad, was regarded as controversial and subsequently altered in the 1970s. In spite of the change, this clock tower remained as a significant link to the nation’s past.
  

• 50sen : The Atkinson Clock Tower, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.
  
  Completed in 1905, the Atkinson Clock Tower is one of the oldest buildings in Kota Kinabalu. As with many such towers constructed during the era of British Malaya, it was built in commemoration of an important member of the colonial administration. In this case, it was in memory of the first Resident of Sabah, a certain Francis George Atkinson, who unfortunately passed away at the age of 28 from malaria (curiously, called ‘Borneo Fever’ in those days). It originally also served as a lighthouse of sorts, giving positional information to vessels navigating the port of Jesselton, the old name of Kota Kinabalu.
  

• RM1.00 : Alor Setar Clock Tower, Kedah.
  
  This eye-catching clock tower was built in 1912 and bears distinctive Moorish influences which some say reflects a blend of Hindu and Islamic motifs. Located along Jalan Putera, near Masjid Zahir, the tower’s function and destiny appear closely linked with that of the mosque, with its various calls to prayer coordinated with the time as indicated on the clock face. This interesting clock tower rises aesthetically into the heights and gives the town of Alor Setar a major landmark which is both historic and visually pleasing.

Also available is a specially produced Postal Card, priced at 80sen each (inclusive of stamp) which features :

• Medan Pasar Clock Tower, Kuala Lumpur. & State Mosque of Kelantan Clock Tower, Kota Bharu
  
  The Medan Pasar clock tower was erected in 1937 in commemoration of the coronation of King George IV. The original memorial plaques were removed some time after Merdeka but the tower remains steadfast until today, right in the middle of the road, in this still very commercial and bustling old quarter of Kuala Lumpur. The sunburst motif at the base of the tower puts it in the mood and style of European art deco, not very commonly found in other clock towers.
  
  In contrast, the State Mosque of Kelantan Clock Tower is Islamic at heart, with its Moorish domes and arches. The proportions are formal and strong, lending an official air to the distinctive structure at the heart of Kota Bharu.

First Day Cover at 30sen each and Presentation at RM4.00 each, can be purchased at all post offices nationwide. Folders at RM5 each is only available at selected post offices.