一枚1980年的庚申年猴票，曾点燃了整整一代人的收藏热情。
1980年发行的猴票是中国邮政发行的首轮生肖邮票的第一张，由大师黄永玉绘制、发行量极少，仅500万枚，且大部分被用于寄信。后因艺术价值与稀缺性，使其成为“中国邮票之王”。
进入90年代，尝到甜头的邮政公司将第二轮生肖邮票发行量暴增至每年2亿枚以上，彻底打乱市场供需，邮票从承载文化的艺术品沦为过剩的印刷品，集邮热迅速冷却，信任亦随之崩塌。
值得欣慰的是，近十年来，第四轮生肖票开始大幅缩量发行，设计回归名家手笔，重新强调文化价值而非财政收益。
其实，人类对收藏的痴迷深植于天性。神经科学研究表明，当我们收集、整理、完成一套物品时，大脑奖赏系统会释放多巴胺，带来满足与愉悦。从儿时剪下的外国邮票，到今天的球星卡、潮玩盲盒，载体虽变，内核未改——都是在不确定的世界里，用微小之物标记“我是谁”，表达对美的凝视与对秩序的渴望。
真正的收藏，从来不是投机，而是一场温柔而持久的热爱。
The 1980 Gengshen Year Monkey Stamp ignited a whole generation's passion for collecting.
Issued in 1980, this monkey stamp was the first in China Post’s inaugural series of Chinese zodiac stamps. Designed by the renowned artist Huang Yongyu, it had an extremely limited print run of only five million copies—most of which were actually used for mailing letters. Over time, its exceptional artistic merit and scarcity elevated it to legendary status as the "King of Chinese Stamps."
By the 1990s, having profited handsomely from this success, postal authorities drastically increased the print runs for the second zodiac series to over 200 million copies per year. This massive oversupply shattered market equilibrium, transforming stamps from culturally rich artworks into mere mass-produced commodities. As a result, the philatelic boom rapidly cooled, and public trust eroded.
Encouragingly, over the past decade, China Post has significantly reduced issuance volumes for the fourth zodiac series and returned to commissioning celebrated artists for design work—once again prioritizing cultural value over fiscal gain.
In truth, humanity’s fascination with collecting is deeply rooted in our nature. Neuroscience reveals that when we gather, organize, or complete a set of items, our brain’s reward system releases dopamine, generating feelings of satisfaction and joy. From childhood collections of foreign postage stamps clipped from envelopes to today’s sports trading cards and blind-box collectibles, the medium may evolve—but the core impulse remains unchanged. In an uncertain world, we use these small treasures to mark “who we are,” expressing both our appreciation of beauty and our longing for order.
Authentic collecting has never been about speculation; it is, and always has been, a gentle, enduring love.
