Ulaanbaatar
First Mongolian Postage Stamps Registered in UNESCO
Art & Culture
Ulaanbaatar, May 9, 2024 /MONTSAME/. The first Mongolian Postage Stamps “Eldev Ochir” and the “Family Chart of Hereditary Lords of the Khalkha Mongols, the House of Chinggis Khaan” were registered in the UNESCO Asia Pacific Region List of Documentary Heritage.
The 10th Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific (MOWCAP) General Meeting was held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, on May 7-8, 2024. During the General Meeting, Member states of the MOWCAP discussed the registration of 21 nominated documentary heritages into the Asia Pacific Documentary Heritage list and unanimously voted for their inclusion. Among these cultural heritages were the “Eldev Ochir” Postage Stamps and the “Family Chart of Hereditary Lords of the Khalkha Mongols, the House of Chinggis Khaan” from Mongolia.
Mongolia has registered five documentary heritages on the UNESCO Asia Pacific Region Documentary Heritage List.
The “Family Chart of Hereditary Lords of the Khalkha Mongols, the House of Chinggis Khaan” illustrates the golden lineage of Chinggis Khaan within the central circle, radiating outwards to the Nobles starting from Gersenz Jalair in a circular layout.
Within the central circle, the names of Khaans and Princes from Chinggis Khaan to Gersenz Prince are inscribed. Separated by four equal quadrants, starting from the sons of Gersenz to the descendant Nobles, the Chart was written until the year 1896. Each quadrant represents one of the 4 Khalkha aimags.
This one-of-a-kind 19th-century manuscript shows the lineage of Mongol Lords of the 4 Khalkha aimags and 7 khoshuus. It represents 30 generations, 980 Nobles, and 700 years of Mongol Nobility History since the Great Chinggis Khaan.
The “Eldev Ochir” Postage Stamps were the first in Mongolia and were put into circulation on July 1, 1924. “Eldev-Ochir” or “Natsagdorj” consists of two equally intersecting Vajras(ceremonial truncheon) and represents the symbol of eternal inseparableness and invincibility. At the time of issuing the postage stamps, Mongolia did not have a national currency, so used the Mongolian Dollar to represent the pricetag. Due to the technology and equipment used to print these postage stamps, some of the stamps were printed slightly differently from the rest.
Holding the 10th Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific (MOWCAP) General Meeting in Mongolia is significant for perpetuating the UNESCO World Memory Program domestically, promoting public participation, and using the memory preservation mechanism creatively.
