Hungarian and Chinese Officials Unveil Commemorative Year of the Snake Stamp in Budapest

In Budapest on January 21, 2025, officials from both Hungary and China gathered at the China Cultural Center to unveil a commemorative postage stamp sheet celebrating the upcoming Chinese Lunar New Year, specifically marking the Year of the Snake. Key figures at the event included Hungarian Deputy State Secretary for State Assets Geza Lang and Chinese Ambassador to Hungary Gong Tao, who both underscored the cultural and economic significance of the occasion.

The stamp sheet, created by the Hungarian-Chinese graphic artist Hu-Yang Kamilla, showcases a distinctive design featuring a red-and-yellow color palette. The design incorporates two intricately drawn red snakes on a yellow background and another two yellow snakes on a red background, with inscriptions in both Chinese and Hungarian that read “Year of the Snake - 2025.” Hu-Yang explained that the wood snake in her design symbolizes wisdom, knowledge, and growth—qualities she wished to reflect through her work.

The commemorative sheet was issued in collaboration with the Chinese Embassy in Hungary, Hungary's Ministry for National Economy, and the China Cultural Center in Budapest, and is limited to 20,000 copies. During the ceremony, Ambassador Gong Tao highlighted the cultural symbolism of the snake in Chinese tradition, noting it as an emblem of wisdom and good fortune, while also mentioning the robust interest of Chinese companies in investing in Hungary. Hungarian Deputy State Secretary Geza Lang reflected on the success of this long-standing cultural initiative, as the current stamp marks the final edition in a series that began in 2014, yet signifying continued cooperation between the two nations.