BGN 10 Coin Marks 140 Years of Bulgarian Exarchate

The Bulgarian National Bank will circulate a BGN 10 coin to commemorate 140 years since the establishment of the Bulgarian Exarchate. Photo by BGNES

The Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) will put into circulation on February 22 a silver commemorative coin to mark 140 years of the Bulgarian Exarchate.

The coin, which is made of silver with partial gold-plating, has a nominal value of BGN 10, and availability will be limited to 6 000 pieces. It will go on sale at BGN 60.

Stefan Tsvetkov, the Secretary of the Bank explained in a presentation on Friday that this was the first coin issued to commemorate the Bulgarian Exarchate.

The Bulgarian Exarchate was the official name of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church from its institution in 1870, as a unilateral act of independence from the Greek Partriarchate of Constantinople, until the Bulgarian Patriarchate was reinstated in 1953.

The borders of the Exarchate extended across present-day Bulgaria, and over territories of Macedonia, representing all Bulgarian districts in the Ottoman Empire. The later outcome of the Balkan Wars of 1912/1913 caused a considerable reduction of the territory of the Exarchate.

The establishment of the Exarchate was regarded as one of the two principal factors in the fight for Bulgarian independence from the Ottoman Empire, the other being the armed conflict that eventually led to the proclamation of a new Bulgarian state in 1878.

The obverse side of the coin features the BNB symbol and the value. The reverse shows a composition based on a lithograph by artist Nikolai Pavlovich. The coin was designed by Vanya Dimitrova.

BNB has also announced further commemorative issues. In April, there will be a coin depicting the Belogradchik Rocks. The bank circulate the coin because of the 2009 campaign for inclusion of the site in the "New Wonders of the World".

In September, 125 years of Unification will be celebrated with a new coin. The following month, the bicentenary of the birth of Zahary Zograf will be commemorated.

At the end of 2010, a gold coin with the image of St Naum will be put into circulation, according to Stefan Tsvetkov.

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