The twelfth gold coin of the Czech Mint from the series Armoured Technology features the Soviet IS-2 tank, which served during World War II.

In 1943, the technological superiority of the Third Reich began to manifest itself on the Eastern Front. The Soviets countered with the heavy Tiger tanks, the brand new Panther medium tanks, and modernized versions of the older PzKpfw III and IV medium tanks. The Red Army's answer to this threat was the IS-1 heavy tank. It resembled the KV series on which it was based in design, but differed in the use of cast parts. It had a heavily folded and extremely thick armour, but its 85 mm cannon proved inadequate. A 122 mm gun was therefore fitted to the turret of the improved heavy tank, designated IS-2. The projectile fired from this weapon had three times the kinetic energy of the projectile fired from the 76.2 mm cannon, which was still the most powerful Soviet tank weapon in 1941. Even in situations where the formidable 25 kg projectile did not penetrate the armour of the enemy tank, it was able to rip the turret from the hull. While Soviet tankers could destroy enemy Panthers at a distance of 1,500 meters with its help, the Germans had to approach them at 400 meters. The IS-2 tanks were first used in the liberation of Ukraine, and then took part in increasing numbers in virtually all the battles fought by the Red Army on the road to Berlin. Their most famous deployment was the 1944 Battle of Sandomierz in Poland, where they proved that, when used properly, they could outperform even the most advanced Nazi machines. A single IS-2 tank destroyed two Tiger II tanks in one battle and damaged another.

The reverse side of the commemorative coin, which is the work of the medal maker MgA. Martin Dašek, presents two depictions of a Soviet tank - the three-quarter view is supplemented with a side silhouette. An inscription of the IS-2 and a detail of the tank belt complete the composition. The belts can also be found on the obverse side of the coin, which is common to the entire tank series. As the licence to issue commemorative coins of the Czech Mint is granted by the Pacific island of Niue, the obverse side bears its necessary elements - the national emblem, the nominal value of 5 DOLLARS (NZD) and the year of issue 2024.

The coin is supplemented with a spectacular packaging in the form of a catalogue card full of period photographs, interesting facts and tactical data. Individual cards can be stored in a collector's case, which you can also find in the offer of the Czech Mint.