Austria 25 Euro Bimetalic Silver-Niobium 2024 "Edaphon coin " UNC

The Silver - Niobium 2024 coin brings the bottom to the top by cleverly depicting the living world beneath our feet. A world we depend on but barely know, Edaphon is as diverse as a rainforest and is both the foundation of our existence and the key to our planet's future.

A collective term that includes all living organisms that exist on the ground, Edaphon is an essential mess built by living creatures that results in growth and new life. The soil teems with ants, beetles and earthworms, but the human eye does not see the inconspicuous army of micro-organisms hidden within. Vital to us, they decompose wilted plants and dead trees, creating fertile humus. Working unconsciously together, bacteria, fungi, plants and animals build a complex structure, but it can quickly break down when cultivated.

Indeed, although humans have cultivated the soil for thousands of years, in modern times industrialization has had devastating effects, with pollution, artificial fertilizers, monocultures and soil compaction reducing or preventing soil productivity. When soil is sealed, its useful functions, such as storing water and filtering pollutants, are lost. Currently, around 11.5 new hectares of natural land are sealed every day in Austria, around half of which is built on.

Another threat is climate change: as it warms, there is a risk that the humus content will decrease and the soil will dry out. If heavy rainfall then occurs, the soil is no longer able to absorb large amounts of water, increasing the likelihood of erosion. If we do nothing to prevent such phenomena, our precious and necessary soil will increasingly risk becoming a scarce commodity.

The front of the Edaphon shows the five factors that contribute to soil development: time, mineral material, climate, soil organisms (in the niobium core) and landscape relief (in the outer silver ring). In the center are the roots of a plant, its leaves protruding into the silver ring. The reverse of the coin depicts a mole at the top, an earthworm at the left, a snail at the bottom and an ant at the right. The niobium core shows a leaf on top and three other important organisms below: a mycelium on the left, a beetle on the right, and an earthworm above.

Among the most impressive products of the Austrian Mint are the innovative silver niobiums

The coloring here is not created by color printing, but by the targeted and extremely precise refraction of light.

Exploring technological themes, the unique and highly sought-after €25 coins are produced exclusively by the Austrian Mint using state-of-the-art technology developed in Austria. No coin edition is like the other – from the design to the play of colors. Popular as gifts, the coins have won many international awards.