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10 Leva Zlato
| Issuer | Bulgarian National Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1890 |
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| Currency | First lev (1881-1952) |
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| Obverse description | At left, an intaglio vignette of a woman picking roses, derived from the engraving 'Rose Picking' by Felix Kanitz; the Bulgarian coat of arms appears at right. The note carries multi-line text in Cyrillic script across the face, with the denomination and issuing authority prominently stated. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Десетъ Лева Българска Народна Банка Въ замѣна на тая банкнота Българската Народна Банка плаща предявителю десетъ лева злато (Translation: Ten Leva Bulgarian National Bank In exchange of this banknote the The Bulgarian National Bank pays the bearer ten leva gold) |
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| Comments |
Bulgaria's first banknote series, of which this is part, was authorized under the 1885 Law on the Bulgarian National Bank — itself drafted just seven years after the country regained autonomy from the Ottoman Empire. The BNB turned to Bradbury Wilkinson almost by default; the London firm was already printing for several newly formed Balkan states scrambling to establish credible paper currency infrastructure in the 1880s.
The "Zlato" designation — meaning gold — indicates the note was nominally backed by gold leva under the Bulgarian gold standard, which the country adopted in line with the Latin Monetary Union framework. Whether that backing held in practice during Bulgaria's volatile early fiscal years is another matter.
P#A5 is among the rarest survivors of the first emission; most circulated heavily in a largely agrarian economy unaccustomed to paper instruments.