# 81 Medal for Maternity, 1st class, 3rd emission
Instituted: On 13th December 1950
This is the 3rd emission of the medal that was awarded for a couple of years only, starting at the beginning of the 1980s and continuing up to the middle of the 1980s. This emission is characterized by the new coat of arms, the medal is about 30 mm thick and the carrier is made of metal, with the image of the national tri color. The same carrier was used by the Bulgarian Mint House in the make of the 2nd emission of the Mother Merit order.
Form: Circle shape with 33 mm of diameter. The first class is yellow metal and the second white. On the obverse there is a mother who suckle a baby and a little girl with flowers. In a miniature medallion a face of George Dimitrov in left. Has 4 issues. The medal is carried on a light-blue ribbon with white line on the edges for the first and second issue and metal ribbon with the Bulgarian national colors for the 3rd and 4th issue.
Classes: Two classes. The first class was given to mothers with 4 children and second to mothers with 3 children.
Emissions:
The Maternity medal was instituted in 1950. During the 40 years of its existence, the 1st class of the medal had 4 emissions as well as 1 mistake variant of the 4th emission. The various emissions differ from each other in terms of back, thickness and carrier.
The 1st emission of the medal was awarded from the moment the medal was instituted until the Bulgarian national coat of arms underwent certain changes in 1971. The first emission is characterized by the old coat of arms on the reverse as well as by thickness of about 20 mm and a bow-shaped, blue carrier.
The 2nd emission of the medal started to be awarded after the new coat of arms was introduced in 1971 and existed up to the beginning of the 1980s. This medal is characterized by the newly introduced coat of arms, it is about 20 mm thick and the carrier is blue-colored and bow-shaped as the one of the previous emission.
The 3rd emission of the medal was awarded for a couple of years only, starting at the beginning of the 1980s and continuing up to the middle of the 1980s. This emission is characterized by the new coat of arms, the medal is about 30 mm thick and the carrier is made of metal, with the image of the national tri color. The same carrier was used by the Bulgarian Mint House in the make of the 2nd emission of the Mother Merit order.
The 4th emission comes into use a little after the middle of the 1980s, when in the spirit of Perestroyka, there was made an attempt to depoliticize the meaning of the medal. The coat of arms on the reverse was replaced with the lettering: “Medal for Maternity”. Therefore, what is typical of this emission is: lettering on the reverse, thickness of the medal of about 30 mm, and a bow-shaped, metal carrier with the image the national tri color.
There is one more variant of the 1st class of the medal, which is also of the 4th emission. What is characteristic of it is a wrong lettering. At the start of the new, fourth emission, there was mistaken one letter in the wording on the reverse: instead of “maychinstvo”, what was inscribed was “maichinstvo”. There was issued a small batch of the “mistaken” medals. No matter how paradoxical it may sound, those medals are considered the most valuable variant by the collectors.
Emission closed: 1991
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