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Postcard Taiwan Formosa Chinese Opera Dolls ROC Handicrafts Chrome c1960s-70s
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Chrome · 1968

Postcard Taiwan Formosa Chinese Opera Dolls ROC Handicrafts Chrome c1960s-70s

Taipei, Taiwan1968ChromeExcellent

Two exquisitely costumed Chinese opera figures stand poised mid-gesture against a warm neutral ground — their porcelain-white faces serene, their silk robes a study in contrasting drama: the figure at left commands attention in deep sapphire-blue satin embroidered with silver cloud motifs, her elaborate lacquered coiffure crowned with a vivid red pompom, while her companion at right sweeps outward in flowing ivory and white robes adorned with delicate floral embroidery, a pleated white fish-tail panel cascading from her waist, and an ornate headdress trailing long black ribbons. These are hand-crafted theatrical dolls — 中華民國之手工藝品, "Handicrafts of the Republic of China" — fashioned to represent the stock female roles (dan) of Peking Opera, a tradition stretching back through dynastic eras of many centuries. Produced for the thriving Taiwan export souvenir and postal trade of the 1960s–70s, the card was available through P.O. Box 1337, Taipei, and captures the pride with which the Republic of China on Taiwan promoted its cultural heritage to the world. The clean, undivided chrome-era back bears the postmark-box and stamp box but was never mailed, remaining in pristine condition — a small time capsule of Cold War-era Taiwanese craft tourism.

$10.95
Excellent
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PC-04886 · P.O. Box 1337, Taipei, Taiwan (unnamed publisher)
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