A coin from the old roof of Parliament - the new 5 euro silver coin "Democracy"

A strong democracy thrives on discourse. Our opinions may differ, but our consensus is called democracy. Similarly, fundamental rights and freedoms are what make a democracy what it is. They enable individual and social freedom and guarantee the participation of the individual.

Moreover, the coin provides an answer to what our nation was founded on: the spirit reflected in the constitution. It states: "Austria is a democratic republic. Its law emanates from the people." In other words: democracy is all of us.

As on the previous Austrian 5 euro coins, the nine national coats of arms are arranged in a circle on the value side of the nine-sided parliamentary coin. The other side shows two heads in profile and one en face in the center. These figures represent the entirety of the people as sovereign. In the left half of the coin's design, a watchful eye can be seen surrounded by stylized laurel leaves. A section of the Austrian parliament building can be seen in the background on the right. In the upper part of the democracy coin and recessed in the relief, the following can be read: "Austria is a democratic republic." In the lower left area is the continuation of the text: "Your right comes from the people." This is Article 1 of the Austrian Federal Constitutional Law (B-VG).