Hamburg

The Elbphilharmonie concert hall set against Hamburg's maritime cityscape — the new landmark of the Free and Hanseatic City. The country code 'D', the year '2023', the mint mark of one of Germany's five mints ('A', 'D', 'F', 'G' or 'J'), the occasion 'HAMBURG', and the ornate initials 'MO' of the artist complete the design.

As a Free and Hanseatic City, Hamburg is one of the oldest trading cities in northern Europe and has been an independent political entity since the Middle Ages. Its Hanseatic history still shapes the city's self-image today: as a member of the Hanseatic League, Hamburg controlled key trade routes between the North Sea and the Baltic from the 13th to the 17th century, building economic and diplomatic independence that lives on in the designation "Free and Hanseatic City" to this day. With about 1.9 million inhabitants, Hamburg is Germany's second-largest city and home to one of Europe's most important seaports, through which millions of tons of goods are handled every year.

Since its opening in January 2017, the Elbphilharmonie has given Hamburg an internationally recognized concert hall that has redefined the harbor edge in the HafenCity district as an architectural attraction. Designed by the Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, the building rises above a historic warehouse and merges industrial history with contemporary architecture into a complex that combines concert operations, gastronomy, and residences under one roof. The Elbphilharmonie is now regarded as one of the world's acoustically outstanding concert halls and has become the Hanseatic city's new landmark. On the occasion of the German federal states series, Germany's 2023 2-euro commemorative coin honors this city-state, which, like no other federal state, embodies the union of city republic, seafaring, and cultural renewal.