N2302

Cranes

Whooping Crane & Black-Necked Crane

Great Wall of China Cachet

Subscriber-Only Edition

Collins Ann Note

United States / China Joint Crane Issue

This limited edition Collins hand-painted cachet was produced for subscribers only, with no extras made. As such, it will not be available on the open market every much making it an exceptional FDC colletable. The two crane stamps represent a joint issue with China. This cover features the black-neck crane which lived in that country. Changing agriculture practicies there have reduced the food supply for this species and numbers of this scarce craine continue to decline. I show one flying over the Great Wall of China. The art work on both stamps is the creation of Zahn Gengxi -- China's foremost wildlife artist.