The National Polytechnic Museum in Sofia is hosting the traveling exhibition of the Regional Ethnographic Museum – Plovdiv, titled “Fast, Accurate, Urgent.”
The Plovdiv collection holds the richest archive in the country related to the history and development of communications in Bulgaria, made possible thanks to BTC AD.

The exhibition, which will be available to visitors in the capital until the end of April next year, traces the evolution of communication from ancient times to the present day. It is richly illustrated with visual and textual materials, highlighting the most significant periods and facts regarding communications in Bulgarian lands – starting from the time of the Ottoman Empire with the “Tatar horse post” and specially established “menzils” (relay stations).

It also covers the introduction of the telegraph in Bulgaria in 1855 and its chronological development. The telegraph, invented around 50 years before the telephone, was the primary means of long-distance communication for many years. A Morse apparatus from 1857 is the earliest item in the collection. In the recreated postal station from the early 20th century, there is a ribbon telegraph with a mounted bronze candlestick, used during power outages.

Visitors can also learn much about the postal system at the end of the 19th century – such as the mandatory carrying of weapons when traveling with the post, the uniform of the postman, and the origins of the postal emblem featuring a coiled horn with a lion inside it, embroidered on postal hats. Authentic documents and forms used by the postal administration are also on display.

Interestingly, the first telephone conversation in Bulgaria took place in Plovdiv — from the office of Aleko Bogoridi, Governor of Eastern Rumelia, to his subordinates’ offices. Also in Plovdiv, during the First Industrial Exhibition in 1892, the first intercity telephone conversation with Sofia was held from a special phone booth constructed in the city garden.

The exhibition presents unique authentic artifacts — some of the first telephone devices to appear in Bulgaria in the late 19th century, owned by municipalities or wealthy households. Notable are large external phones by companies like Berliner, Western Electric, and Siemens & Halske, the latter featuring two receivers for conference calls. Also impressive is one of the first coin-operated telephones made by Ericsson, complete with original user instructions.

A rich collection of postage stamps is also on display, featuring samples from the first centime issues (1879) through to the 1980s. The first philatelic society in Bulgaria was founded in Plovdiv, laying the foundation for the revival of this tradition in the present day.