diff --git a/mpeg/id3v1/id3v1tag.cpp b/mpeg/id3v1/id3v1tag.cpp
index b8777b90..1aa125e6 100644
--- a/mpeg/id3v1/id3v1tag.cpp
+++ b/mpeg/id3v1/id3v1tag.cpp
@@ -170,7 +170,7 @@ void ID3v1::Tag::setGenre(const String &s)
 
 void ID3v1::Tag::setYear(uint i)
 {
-  d->year = String::number(i);
+  d->year = i > 0 ? String::number(i) : String::null;
 }
 
 void ID3v1::Tag::setTrack(uint i)