The year 2023 marks the 200th anniversary of the launch of regular express post on the Vienna-Bratislava route. This anniversary is commemorated by a Slovak commemorative coin minted in top quality proof.

At the beginning of the 19th century, Europe was developing rapidly under the influence of the Industrial Revolution. Changes did not escape the Habsburg monarchy, whose transport network, despite the intensive construction of paved roads, lagged behind the needs of modern society. Therefore, the new director of the postal administration, Maximilian Ottenfeld initiated a reform of passenger and postal transport. This contributed to build regular journeys in comfortable and well-suspended carriages, which travelled on postal routes even at night. Such a “eilpostwagen“, which was pulled by four or six horses, could reach a breakneck speed of 12 kilometres per hour. The first test run took place in 1823 on the Vienna-Brno route. Due to their great success, the fast cars were deployed on the Vienna-Prague and Vienna-Bratislava routes the same year. The carriage arrived from Vienna to Bratislava in just 6 hours.

Medal maker Mária Poldaufová dedicated the obverse side of the coin to a historic horse-drawn mail wagon. The relief, which the artist has conceived in a symbolic and dynamic way, is supplemented with the texts VIEDEŇ, BRATISLAVA a SLOVENSKO, the annual years 1823-2023 and the stars of the European Union. The reverse side then presents all the elements of a valid coin with a nominal value of 2 €.

The base metal commemorative coin, which is stored in an elegant etui, was minted by the Mincovňa Kremnica Mint and issued by the National bank of Slovakia.