The exhibition displays some of the most valuable donations received by the museum in 2015, including belonging to emblematic figures of Bulgarian history and valuable artifacts received from military units directly subordinated to the Minister of Defense and the Bulgarian Army. The National Military History Museum is starting the year celebrating its 100th anniversary with this gesture of gratitude to all those who have been enriching the museum’s collection for a century and showing their commitment to the mission of preserving Bulgaria’s historical heritage for future generations.
The exhibition features the ceremonial uniform of Bulgaria’s first aviator, Simeon Petrov, donated to the museum by his granddaughter Rada Sechenskaya, as well as documents and awards belonging to Gustav Carlson, the Bulgarian army’s first diver and a participant in the Russo-Turkish War. The belongings of one of the foreign soldiers who gave his life for the Bulgarian cause, Louis Ayer, who died as a commander of the 33rd Svishtov Infantry Regiment during the defense of Doiran in 1916, will also be on display. His personal sword with a scabbard, soldier’s cross, and medals were donated by his grandson Louis Costa Ayer. Raising national price stands out the binoculars of Todor Panitsa, which became part of the museum’s collection through his descendant Elizaveta Miladinova, while a Bulgarian battle flag, model 1937, donated by private collector Dimitar Neykov with the assistance of the General Directorate of the National Police.
The most interesting and valuable artifacts in the exhibition are the items received from military units. Visitors have the opportunity to have a close look at a variety of rare combat and sporting pistols as well as light and heavy machine guns used by the Bulgarian army in the wars for national unity. Major sets of German and Soviet medical instruments from World War II, mine detectors and mine clearance devices, a field chemical laboratory, and a long-range photography device are also of particular interest.
