Bulgaria 1973 5 leva KM-82

Stack's Bowers February 2023 Collector's Choice sale, lot 72559

This specimen was lot 72559 in Stack's Bowers Collector's Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, February 2023), where it sold for $312. The catalog description^[1] noted, "BULGARIA. 5 Leva, 1973. Sofia Mint. NGC PROOF-69 Ultra Cameo. A near-perfect example with deeply mirrored fields and frosty devices." Wikipedia comments,

"Vasil Levski (Bulgarian: Васил Левски, born Vasil Ivanov Kunchev (Васил Иванов Кунчев; 18 July 1837 – 18 February 1873), was a Bulgarian revolutionary who is, today, a national hero of Bulgaria. Dubbed the Apostle of Freedom, Levski ideologised and strategised a revolutionary movement to liberate Bulgaria from Ottoman rule. Levski founded the Internal Revolutionary Organisation, and sought to foment a nationwide uprising through a network of secret regional committees."

Another five leva (KM 83) was struck in 1973. This module was used for NCLT's throughout the seventies.

Recorded mintage: 200,000.

Specification: 20.5 g, 0.900 fine silver, 36 mm diameter.

Catalog reference: KM-82.

Source:

• Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
• ^[1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, February 2023 World Collectors Choice Online Auction, featuring the David Sterling Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2023.

Link to:

• 1972 5 leva, 250th Anniversary of Paisi Hilendarski's Birth
• 1974 stotinka
• 1974 5 stotinki
• 1974 20 stotinki
• Bulgaria 1974 50 stotinki
• 1974 5 leva, death of Alexander Stamboliiski
• Coins and currency dated 1973