The “Four Arts of Chinese Scholars”, namely qin (the guqin, Chinese stringed instrument), qi (the strategy game of go), shu (Chinese calligraphy) and hua (Chinese painting), are deeply rooted in the Chinese civilization, and have been admired and pursued by people of refined tastes since ancient times, becoming an artistic form to show dispositions, express feelings and cultivate sentiments. Qin was a symbol of ancient Chinese musical culture. Implicit and profound, it reveals extraordinary taste through its elegance, indicating the endless charm of self-constraint and meaningfulness in traditional Chinese culture. The story about Bo Ya and Zhong Ziqi known as “Lofty Mountains and Flowing Water” has been popular for long. Qi, known as “yi” in ancient times, specially refers to weiqi (the game of go). The game of go is like the Tao of Taoism, or the life of man, containing numberless truths in the world despite its small size. In ancient times, the best go player was Yiqiu. According to Gaozi Shang (First Part of Gaozi) in Mencius, “Yiqiu was the best player in the game of go all over the territory”, which is evidence for his extraordinary skill in the game of go, and the story “Yiqiu Teaching His Disciples” is thus well known.

Stamp Title: Four Arts of Chinese Scholars
（4-1), Lofty mountains and flowing water, 120 fen, 33 * 44 mm
（4-2), Yi Qiu teaching his students, 120 fen, 33 * 44 mm
（4-3), Huai Su facing a pond (to study calligraphy), 120 fen, 33 * 44 mm
（4-4), Wu Daozi wall paintings, 120 fen, 33 * 44 mm

Qin Qi Shu Hua

Qin Qi Shu Hua

Serial number: 2013-15
Values in set: 4
Date of issue: July 13, 2013
Denomination: 480 fen
Size of stamps: 33 * 44 mm
Perforation: 13.5
Sheet composition:
16 for Sheet I; 8 for Sheet II (2 sets)
Size of sheet:
166 * 220 mm for Sheet I; 156 * 150 mm for Sheet II
Designer: Fan Zeng
Printing process: Offset
Printing House: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing Works

Knowing China through Chinese Stamps.

2013年特种邮票《琴棋书画》
中国邮政2013年7月13日发行《琴棋书画》特种邮票1套4枚。
（4-1）T 高山流水　1.2元 1450.24万
（4-2）T 弈秋课徒　1.2元 1450.24万
（4-3）T 怀素临池　1.2元 1450.24万
（4-4）T 道子画壁　1.2元 1450.24万

志号：2013-15
邮票规格：33×44mm
齿孔度数：13.5度
整张枚数：版式一16枚、版式二8枚（2套，180万版）
整张规格：版式一166×220mm、版式二156×150mm
版别：胶印
防伪方式：防伪纸张、防伪油墨、异形齿孔、荧光喷码
设计者：范曾（邮票）、夏竞秋（版式二边饰）
资料提供（版式二边饰）：故宫博物院
印制厂：北京邮票厂

注：1、同时发行《琴棋书画》特种邮票本票册一本，发行量14.20万本。
2、为配合2013（第一届）中国国际集藏文化博览会举行，另制作《琴棋书画》绢质邮票（整张枚数：8枚（2套）；整张规格：156×150毫米；发行65万版）。销售日期：2013年9月26日。