25 Lev #87

Front

Georgi Dimitrov (1882–1949), Bulgarian communist leader who served as General Secretary of the Bulgarian Communist Party and first communist Prime Minister of Bulgaria from 1946 until his death in 1949. A leading figure in the Comintern and hero of the Reichstag Fire Trial, Dimitrov is honored on this note as the founder of the People's Republic of Bulgaria. The state coat of arms of the People's Republic of Bulgaria appears at center, featuring the rampant lion within a wreath of wheat, topped by a red star, with the inscription '9 September 1944' (the date of the communist coup).

Back

Railway workers laying track in a tunnel, representing socialist industrial development and the modernization of Bulgaria's transportation infrastructure under communist rule. The scene depicts laborers engaged in railway construction, symbolizing the emphasis on heavy industry and workers' contributions to building socialism during the 1950s industrialization campaigns.

History

This note belongs to the Issue of 1951, the first major banknote series of communist Bulgaria following the establishment of the People's Republic in 1946. Issued during the Stalinist era under Dimitrov's successor Vulko Chervenkov, this series reflected the personality cult around Dimitrov and the emphasis on socialist industrialization. The 1951 series remained in circulation until the currency reform of 1962, when it was replaced at a ratio of 10:1 old to new leva. The series is notable for its socialist realist imagery and extensive use of labor and industrial themes.