"Emperor Ferdinand's Northern Railway" | 20 Euro | Silver coin

The first railroad line in Austria

The history of the railroad in Austria began in 1836, when Emperor Ferdinand commissioned the construction of a railroad line between Vienna and the coal mines in Bohemia and Moravia. The very next year, the inaugural journey took place from Vienna Floridsdorf with one of six locomotives specially imported from London. It pulled eight carriages with 164 guests of honor and reached Deutsch Wagram at a speed of 33 km/h in 24 minutes. On January 6, 1838, it was then possible to travel north over the newly built Danube railroad bridge for the first time. This event is depicted on the second side of the coin, where people wave from the banks of the Danube and Vienna's local mountains can be seen in the background. The first side of the coin shows the "Austria" steam locomotive and the three different categories of passenger carriages in fascinating detail.

Text courtesy of the Austrian Mint.