10 Santim - Alexander I Essai

Bulgaria gained autonomy from the Ottoman Empire in 1878 following the Russo-Turkish War, and the new principality immediately needed a coinage system. These 1880 essais — trial pieces submitted for official review — were struck in Paris as Bulgaria evaluated its monetary options before settling on a national currency framework. The "Santim" denomination reflects an early consideration of French-style decimal nomenclature, which was ultimately abandoned; Bulgaria adopted the lev and stotinka system instead.

KM#E1 is the copper trial. Companion essais in other metals were struck simultaneously, making this part of a small pattern set that never progressed to circulation.