Collecting Bulgarian Awards

[d-riemer]

My collecting focus drifted from the Soviet Union to Bulgaria, from an area flooded by fakes to a field without fakes (yet). Not having to worry about fakes makes it possible to concentrate more on awards as witnesses of history.

In the process, I learned to admire the small nation of about 8 million people who survived 500 years of Turkish occupation without losing their nationality. Their maneuvering between big powers, Germany and Soviet Union in WWII, and their transition from a monarchy to a People’s Republic and then from a Communist state to a democracy, where the former Tsar is prime minister now, fascinates me.

I believe the People's Republic of Bulgaria, sometimes called the 16th Soviet Republic or the little brother of the Soviet Union, deserves a special place in this Forum.