French postal service company La Poste issued two panes of stamps to celebrate the upcoming Chinese New Year of the Rat on January 18. /Xinhua Photo

The first pane of 400,000 stamps depict a rat holding a lotus and the second set, containing 325,000 copies, features a rat bride inspired by Chinese folklore. /Xinhua Photo

The company has been issuing stamps featuring the zodiac animal of the year since 2005. This year's stamps were designed by Paris-based Chinese artist Chen Jiang Hong. /Xinhua Photo