In 1988 the Korean National Tuberculosis Association (KNTA) seal program used fifteen different images for the 1988 Christmas and TB seals. The sheets of fifty seals are unusual in that there are forty seals per sheet with four blocks of ten of images, and a middle row consisting of ten seals of two sets of five other images. The seals depict Koreans performing the “Nongak”, the Korean “Farmers Dance”. This folk dance is one of the oldest forms of dance in Korea. Also issued was a souvenir sheet of ten seals with one set of the ten of the images.
The 2022 Korea Postage Stamp Catalogue (KPSC) gives the catalogue numbers for the 1988 seals as TCS 228-237 for the ten different images, in four blocks within the sheet. The middle horizontal row has two sets of five seals that the KPSC gives the number of TSC 228A-237A. The KPSC values the set of ten seals at 5,000 won (US$3.80) and 12,000 won (US$9.15) for the middle set of five. The KPSC catalogue number for the souvenir sheet of ten is TSC 237a and it is valued at 5000 won (US$3.80).
In 1988, the production by the KNTA of the Christmas/TB seals, slightly increased over the previous year to the amount of 24,670, 000 seals. The author does not know the number of the 1988 seals that was sold. The price of each seal jumped up by 20 won from the previous year to 100 won. With the numbers of seal printed with the increased value of each seal, the author believes that another record year was set for the amount of the funds generated by seal sales for fighting TB by the KNTA. The author does not know if the seals in the souvenir sheet were counted in the production figures.
The author has seen two types of the sheets of fifty seals of TCS 228-237. Shown in this article is a Type 1 sheet, which is a sheet that does not have colour guide markings in the bottom margin. There is another sheet, Type 2, which has color guide markings in the bottom margin. The author does not have a full sheet with color guides, but does have a partial sheet with the bottom margin showing the color guide markings. For the souvenir sheet, the author has seen two types, with different markings in the margins, there may be additional types of souvenir sheets with other markings in the margins. Within this article two different souvenir sheets are shown, the two known by the author.
The author does have a 1988 folder, also depicted in this article that contained the seals in a pocket in which the seals are placed, but does not have an envelope, if one was used for the 1988 seals. For the first time we see that the number of folders produced, and it was 15,000 for 1988.
