Bulgaria issued a series of wildlife-themed silver coins through the 1980s under the communist government, largely intended for the hard-currency export market rather than domestic circulation. These coins were sold through Balkantourist and foreign numismatic agencies to generate Western currency — a common practice among Eastern Bloc states whose soft currencies had no international exchange value.
KM#193 belongs to that export series. Mintage figures for these issues were tightly controlled by the Bulgarian National Bank and are inconsistently documented in Western references.
Bulgaria issued a series of wildlife-themed silver coins through the 1980s under the communist government, largely intended for the hard-currency export market rather than domestic circulation. These coins were sold through Balkantourist and foreign numismatic agencies to generate Western currency — a common practice among Eastern Bloc states whose soft currencies had no international exchange value.
KM#193 belongs to that export series. Mintage figures for these issues were tightly controlled by the Bulgarian National Bank and are inconsistently documented in Western references.