The Vienna Philharmonic (german: Wiener Philharmoniker), often shortened to Philharmonic, is a

bullion coin Bullion is non-ferrous metal that has been refined to a high standard of elemental purity. The term is ordinarily applied to bulk metal used in the production of coins and especially to precious metals such as gold and silver. It comes fro ...

of gold, silver, or platinum produced by the

Austrian Mint The Austrian Mint (german: Münze Österreich) is located in Vienna and is responsible for minting Austrian coins. Since 1989 it has been a public limited company (''Aktiengesellschaft'') and a subsidiary of Austria's central bank Oesterreichische ...

(''Münze Österreich''). The coin is named for the

Vienna Philharmonic The Vienna Philharmonic (VPO; german: Wiener Philharmoniker, links=no) is an orchestra that was founded in 1842 and is considered to be one of the finest in the world. The Vienna Philharmonic is based at the Musikverein in Vienna, Austria. It ...

orchestra, which inspired the design of both sides. It was introduced in 1989 as a one-

troy ounce Troy weight is a system of units of mass that originated in 15th-century England, and is primarily used in the precious metals industry. The troy weight units are the grain, the pennyweight (24 grains), the troy ounce (20 pennyweights), and th ...

(ozt), gold coin with a

face value The face value, sometimes called nominal value, is the value of a coin, bond, stamp or paper money as printed on the coin, stamp or bill itself by the issuing authority. The face value of coins, stamps, or bill is usually its legal value. Howe ...

of 2,000

Austrian schilling The schilling (German: ''Schilling'') was the currency of Austria from 1925 to 1938 and from 1945 to 1999, and the circulating currency until 2002. The euro was introduced at a fixed parity of €1 = 13.7603 schilling to replace it. The schil ...

s. It is generally one of the world's best selling bullion coins. In 2002, with the adoption of the euro currency, the nominal value of the one-ounce coin was changed to 100 euros. In 2008, the Mint introduced a one-ounce silver version of the coin with a nominal value of 1.50 euros. The silver coin is also one of the top selling bullion coins, ranked third in 2013. In 2016, the mint introduced a one ounce platinum coin with a face value of 100 euros. Like any bullion coin, the value is based primarily on the metal content and the spot price of that metal on the commodities markets. The gold Philharmonic has a fineness of 999.9 (often written 0.9999, also known as 24 carat or 99.99% pure). In most countries in Europe, the gold Philharmonic is traded VAT-free while the Silver Philharmonic is partly subject to a reduced VAT rate. The coins are minted according to demand and production varies from year to year accordingly. The design on the coin remains the same each year; only the year of issue changes. From the outset, the obverse of the coin depicts the pipe organ in the Vienna

Musikverein The ( or ; ), commonly shortened to , is a concert hall in Vienna, Austria, which is located in the Innere Stadt district. The building opened in 1870 and is the home of the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra. The acoustics of the building's 'Great ...

's Golden Hall. The reverse of the coin shows instruments of the Vienna Philharmonic, including Vienna horn, bassoon, harp, and four violins centered on a cello. Both designs were produced by the chief engraver of the Austrian Mint, Thomas Pesendorfer.

History

In November 1988, the Austrian Mint was authorized to produce one-ounce and fractional-ounce gold bullion coins by the

Austrian National Council The National Council (german: Nationalrat) is one of the two houses of the Austrian Parliament and is frequently referred to as the lower house. The constitution endows the National Council with far more power than the Federal Council. Responsi ...

. The gold Vienna Philharmonic was first offered on October 10, 1989, and was initially minted in two sizes: one-ounce and one-quarter ounce. The one-tenth and one-half ounce coins were added in 1991 and 1994 respectively. All coins feature the same design with the only difference being the weight and face value shown. The popularity of the Vienna Philharmonic grew quickly: in 1990, the coin was the best selling in Europe and second in the world. In 1992, 1995, 1996 and 2000 the World Gold Council declared it the best-selling gold coin in the world. Since its introduction in October 1989 up to 2012, more than 14 million Philharmonics have been sold for a total weight of 9.6 million ounces or approximately 329 tons of gold. After the introduction of the

euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

, Philharmoincs began to be minted with a face value denominated in the new currency starting in 2002. Since February 1, 2008, a one-ounce silver version of the coin with a nominal value of 1.50 euros has been issued, struck from 99.9 percent pure silver. Unlike the reeded edge of the gold coin, the edge of the silver coins are smooth. Coins are shipped in boxes of 500, called "monster boxes." Each monster box consists of 25 tubes of 20 coins each. Sales of the silver Philharmonic have been brisk with over five million coins sold, equal to 1,800 tons of silver in the 5-year period of 2008 through 2012. The mint introduced a one-ounce platinum coin with the same design as the gold and silver in 2016. Like the gold coin, it has a face value of 100 euros. The purity is shown as 999.5 with the obverse of the coin reading "1 UNZE PLATIN 999.5." The Vienna Philharmonic is currently the only European bullion coin with a face value in euros, although it is only

legal tender Legal tender is a form of money that courts of law are required to recognize as satisfactory payment for any monetary debt. Each jurisdiction determines what is legal tender, but essentially it is anything which when offered ("tendered") in ...

in Austria. In 2004, the Vienna Philharmonic accounted for 35 to 40 percent of sales in Europe. It is also popular in Japan and North America. For the 25th anniversary of the Vienna Philharmonic gold coin, the mint introduced the -ounce coin featuring the same design, but with a face value of 4.00 euros. Also for the anniversary, 5,000

proof Proof most often refers to: * Proof (truth), argument or sufficient evidence for the truth of a proposition * Alcohol proof, a measure of an alcoholic drink's strength Proof may also refer to: Mathematics and formal logic * Formal proof, a c ...

sets of the one-ounce and one-quarter ounce coins were produced. The -ounce coin has been continued in production.

Design

The design for the coin was originally created by Thomas Pesendorfer to be used for the gold Vienna Philharmonic that was first issued in 1989. The Austrian Mint introduced the silver version of the coin in 2008. The design was unchanged and has remained the same each year. The obverse features the

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks' ...

from Golden Hall in the

, the concert hall in Vienna where the namesake orchestra plays. The German words "" (Republic of Austria), the composition and the weight are also minted on the obverse. The reverse design features an array of musical instruments including a harp, violins, a cello, a

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuos ...

, and a Vienna horn. The words "" (Vienna Philharmonic) is also inscribed, as well as "" (Silver) or "" (Platinum) on the respective coins. Silvercoins

Gold Philharmonic specifications: Silver Philharmonic specifications: Platinum Philharmonic specifications:

Variations

"Big Phil"

For the 15th anniversary of the Vienna Philharmonic bullion coin in 2004, the Austrian Mint created a 1,000-troy ounce version with nominal value 100,000 euros. The "Big Phil" coin consists of of gold. Dimensions were increased by tenfold over the one ounce coin yielding a diameter of and thickness (10 times thicker; 10 times wider; 1,000 times heavier than the standard 1-ounce coin). It was one of the largest coins with the highest denomination until it was eclipsed in 2007 by the Royal Canadian Mint's version of the

Canadian Gold Maple Leaf The Canadian Gold Maple Leaf (GML) is a gold bullion coin that is issued annually by the Government of Canada. It is produced by the Royal Canadian Mint. The Gold Maple Leaf is legal tender with a face value of 50 Canadian dollars. The market ...

with a face value of 1,000,000

Canadian dollar The Canadian dollar (symbol: $; code: CAD; french: dollar canadien) is the currency of Canada. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, there is no standard disambiguating form, but the abbreviation Can$ is often suggested by notable style g ...

s. In keeping with the 15th anniversary theme, only fifteen 100,000-euro Philharmonics were produced. The coin was unveiled in front of the

Wiener Riesenrad The (; 'Vienna Giant errisWheel'), or simply Riesenrad, is a tall Ferris wheel at the entrance of the Prater amusement park in Leopoldstadt, the 2nd district of Austria's capital Vienna. It is one of Vienna's most popular tourist attractions, an ...

in Vienna. One of the coins is displayed in the foyer of the Munich headquarters of precious metals company Pro Aurum.

20-ounce gold coin

For the 20th anniversary of the Vienna Philharmonic coin, the Austrian Mint created a new size of the coin. This coin has a face value of 2,000 euros and a fine weight of 20 troy ounces or 622 grams. The diameter is with a thickness of . At the time of issue in October 2009, the material value was around 14,000 euros. Due to the limited minting, the coin was sold at a premium of approximately 10 percent above gold price. The total circulation of these coins was 6,027 (providing 2,009 coins in each of the European, American, and Japanese markets), which were sold in velvet-lined wooden cases with certificates.

Mintage figures

Gold

Platinum

Silver

References

External links

Vienna Philharmonic
at the official website of the Austrian Mint
Austrian Bullion Coins
– Online Coin Club {{Portal bar, Austria, Money, Numismatics Bullion coins of Austria Gold bullion coins Silver bullion coins Platinum bullion coins Euro coins Vienna Philharmonic