Manchukuo 144

     In 1932 Japan created "Manchukuo out of the Manchurian provinces of Fengtien, Kirin and Heilukian plus the Chinese province of Jehol, as a puppet state to serve as a base from which to invade China. It was recognized by only 23 of the 80 nations that existed then. Manchukuo was dissolved in 1945 when Japan surrendered to the allies at the end of World War II.
     A stamp was issued March 1, 1942 to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the founding of Manchukuo. The design features a map of Manchuria. At the top of the stamp is an inscription in Chinese with a five-petal orchid crest, the "orchid crest of Manchukuo" similar to the Japanese chrysanthemum crest. The crest representing the puppet regime of the Emperor Kangde ("Tranquility and Virtue") appears on all Manchukuo stamps after 1935.
     At the bottom of the map there is a building representing the gate of Shanhaiguan, the famous pass through which the Manchus were admitted by Wu Sangui to take over China. It is at the eastern end of the Great Wall of China at the Yellow Sea.