- Base metal
XXIV Summer Olympic Games, Seoul (Republic of Korea), 1988
1988 · 1 lev · Bulgarian National Bank
Specifications
- Metal
- Copper-nickel alloy
- Weight
- 7 g
- Diameter
- 27 mm
- Quality
- Proof
- Official mintage
- 300,000
- Year of issue
- 1988
- Series
- Individual issue
- Designer
- Chavdar Alexiev
- Minted by
- Sofia, Bulgaria
- Catalogue no.
- BC-1988-14
- Issue price
- 1.00 лв
- pre-1999 lev · BNB, 1988
- Market value (asking prices)
- €5.00
- 1 listing (asking price) · Balkan Auction, 19 Oct 2026
- Melt value
- —
- base metal, not tracked
Market prices – asking prices
Asking prices on Balkan Auction, 19 Oct 2026
- Ungraded coins
- €5.00
- median asking price €5.00 · 1 listing
Sample listings
Asking prices of active listings (fixed price, starting price or current highest bid) in the public coin category of Balkan Auction. These are asking prices, not completed sales. Lots, sets, replicas, error varieties and precious-metal prices below the metal value are excluded. BulgarianCoins does not buy, sell or value coins.
Relative rarity
3/10 · Common
How we calculate it
The score starts from the mintage on a logarithmic scale (500 coins or fewer = 10, ten million = 1). Coins of the Principality and the Kingdom that circulated get extra points, because much of that silver and gold was melted down and many coins were lost in the wars and withdrawn in 1952. Modern commemorative coins lose a point, since almost all of them survive in collections. Finally we look at how often the coin is offered on Balkan Auction: frequent offers lower the score.
Bulgarian Coin Exchange · Beta
Own this coin? Sell it at auction or at a fixed price to other collectors on the Bulgarian Coin Exchange. We do not buy or sell coins ourselves.
Obverse
The obverse depicts the stylised figures of running athletes. The emblems of the International Olympic Committee and of the Bulgarian Olympic Committee are to the left of the runners. The year of issue ‘1988’ and the nominal value ‘1 ЛЕВ’ (1 lev) are below, and above, in a semicircle, is the inscription ‘ХХIV ЛЕТНИ ОЛИМПИЙСКИ ИГРИ’ (XXIV Summer Olympic Games).
Reverse
The reverse features the centrally placed coat of arms of the People’s Republic of Bulgaria, encircled by the words ‘НАРОДНА РЕПУБЛИКА БЪЛГАРИЯ’ (People’s Republic of Bulgaria).
Edge & packaging
Serrated edge. Issued in a protective capsule with an information leaflet. The BNB advises keeping the capsule closed.
Image: The Seoul Olympic torch, 1988 · Ken Hackman, U.S. Air Force, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
About this coin
XXIV Summer Olympic Games, Seoul (Republic of Korea), 1988
A 1 lev base metal coin issued by the Bulgarian National Bank in 1988. 300,000 pieces were minted in Sofia, Bulgaria, to a design by Chavdar Alexiev.
Sources: BNB coin page · BNB register and prices · market listing 1
