Item number: M249

Year: AD 1954

Size: 40.3 x 40.3 x 1.7 mm

Weight: 17.95 g

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2013

This is a commemorative badge from AD 1954 (43rd year of the Republic of China), privately commissioned by Spencer Moosa, a reporter for the Associated Press stationed in Taipei, as a gift to his friends. The badge is entirely black, with the obverse centre featuring a depiction of Taiwan Island inscribed with the Chinese characters “台湾” (Taiwan). The bottom edge displays the manufacturing year “1954,” while the top edge bears the inscription “FORMOSA,” a name commonly used in the Western world to refer to Taiwan.

The name Formosa, meaning “beautiful island,” originated during the Age of Discovery when Portuguese sailors, impressed by the island’s lush vegetation, exclaimed “Ilha Formosa.”

The reverse of the medal is inscribed with “WITH BEST WISHES FROM SPENCER MOOSA”, and the lower edge is engraved with the location “TAIPEI.”

In AD 1905, Spencer Moosa was born in British colonial India. His career in journalism began with Reuters in the UK. From AD 1931 onwards, he joined the American Associated Press, specialising in reporting on the increasingly tense situation in the Far East. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, Moosa relocated with the Nationalist Government from Shanghai to the wartime capital of Chongqing, staying with his wife at the “Chongqing Foreign Correspondents’ Club,” which was specifically arranged for foreign journalists. While in Chongqing, Moosa noticed his secretary clipping the nickname “Flying Tigers” from a Chinese newspaper, referring to the “First American Volunteer Group.” Moosa used this nickname in his telegrams to the United States, thereby popularising the “Flying Tigers” name worldwide.

After the end of the Sino-Japanese War, Moosa remained in China to monitor the new developments in the Chinese Civil War. In AD 1949, as the Nationalist Government was on the verge of collapse on the mainland, Moosa was among the few foreign journalists to witness the fall of Beijing. Later that year, he accompanied Chiang Kai-shek on one of the last four planes evacuating to Taiwan.

After relocating to Taipei, Moosa maintained close interactions with key officials and news departments of the Republic of China government. In AD 1953, as an Associated Press journalist, he interviewed Chiang Kai-shek at the Presidential Office, discussing his views on the newly elected US President Eisenhower. By the 1970s, Moosa, then a resident journalist in Taiwan, had joined The Times of London. He was among the first to report on the reactions of the Republic of China government and the Taiwanese public following Taiwan’s expulsion from the United Nations.

According to historical materials from Taiwan’s Academia Historica, Spencer Moosa had close interactions with Chiang Ching-kuo, the second-in-command of the Republic of China. In March AD 1973, Moosa received tea from Premier Chiang Ching-kuo through the Information Minister. In December of the same year, Moosa’s ailing wife was successfully admitted to Taipei Veterans General Hospital for treatment, arranged by Chiang Ching-kuo. Moosa spent his final years in Taiwan and was recorded as working with Taiwan’s Tourism Bureau in AD 1987. On May 18, AD 1990, having witnessed many significant events in the history of the Republic of China, Moosa passed away in a Taipei hospital due to cardiopulmonary disease at the age of 85.

物件編號: M249

年代: 公元 1954 年

尺寸: 40.3 x 40.3 x 1.7 mm

重量: 17.95 g

來源: 大城郵幣社 2013

這是一枚民國43年 (公元1954年)，美聯社派駐於台北的記者史賓塞·穆沙，自費贈與友人的台灣紀念章。紀念章的通體為黑色，正面中央是一個以中文標示「台湾」二字的台灣島圖飾，下緣標示著製造年份「1954」字樣，上緣則鐫刻歐美世界對於台灣習慣的別稱「FORMOSA」(福爾摩沙)。台灣被稱作福爾摩沙源於地理大發現時期，葡萄牙水手瞥見島上樹木茂盛驚呼「美麗之島」之美名。

獎章背面鐫刻「WITH BEST WISHES FROM SPENCER MOOSA」(最真摯的祝福來自史賓塞·穆沙) ，下緣則鐫刻地點「TAIPEI」(台北)。

公元1905年，史賓塞·穆沙出生於英國殖民下的印度，穆沙的記者生涯始於英國路透社。並且自公元1931年起，投效美國的美聯社專門報導日益緊張的遠東局勢。八年抗戰期間，穆沙隨著國民政府從上海轉移到戰時首都重慶，偕同妻子下榻於專門替外國記者安排的「重慶外國記者之家」。穆沙在重慶期間，注意到秘書從中國報紙上摘錄「第一美國志願大隊」別稱「飛行中的老虎」。穆沙於發往美國的電報使用這個綽號，使得「飛虎隊」之名享譽全球。

中日戰爭結束之後，穆沙仍然留在中國關注國共內戰的新態勢。公元1949年，國民政府在大陸將要崩塌之際，穆沙是少數親眼目睹北平淪陷的外國記者，還在同年年底隨同蔣介石，一起搭上最後四架撤往台灣的飛機。穆沙搬遷至台北後，跟中華民國的政府要員和新聞部門持續保持密切互動。公元1953年，以美聯社記者身分赴總統府訪問蔣介石，討論對於新任美國總統艾森豪的看法。公元1970年代之際，彼時長駐於台灣的穆沙已跳槽至倫敦時報服務，並在第一時間報導退出聯合國後，中華民國政府和台灣內部的反應。

根據台灣國史館史料，穆沙和中華民國二把手蔣經國有密切的互動，公元1973年，穆沙先是在3月收到行政院長蔣經國委託新聞局長轉贈的茶葉。12月的時候，生病的妻子則在蔣經國安排下，成功入住台北榮民總醫院治病。穆沙最後的時光都留在台灣，公元1987年還留下在台灣的觀光局工作的紀錄。公元1990年5月18號，見證中華民國諸多重要轉折的穆沙，因為心肺疾病在台北的醫院過世，享年85歲。