Coin Ukraine 2025 #05 Chornobyl. Revival. The European Elk BOOKLET

Description

Chornobyl. Revival. The European Elk

Чорнобиль. Відродження. Лось європейський

This coin celebrates the largest representative of the deer family in Ukraine – the European elk (Alces alces), which has become a symbol of the restoration of natural ecosystems of the Chornobyl Radiation and Ecological Biosphere Reserve. The Chornobyl Nature Reserve is the largest nature conservation site in Ukraine, with an area of 226,269.5 hectares. It is of key importance for the preservation of natural processes in areas of radiation exposure and is a refuge for many rare species of plants and animals. The European elk, put on the Ukrainian List of Endangered Species in 2017, represents the power of nature, which is able to recover even after the most severe challenges. The presence of elks in the reserve emphasizes the importance of biodiversity conservation and having a responsible attitude to the environment.

Obverse: above is Ukraine’s small coat of arms, under which is the legend УКРАЇНА (Ukraine); to the right of the coat of arms is the coin’s face value 5/ГРИВЕНЬ (5/hryvnias); in the center is a symbolic wheel of life that marks the rebirth of nature: a stylized international radiation area sign shrouded in leaves and surrounded by animals that are increasing their populations in the 30-kilometer exclusion zone, which has become a kind of breeding reserve for black storks, Przewalski’s horses, lynxes, bison, elks, and brown bears; there is a circular legend against a smooth background, reading: ЧОРНОБИЛЬСЬКИЙ РАДІАЦІЙНО-ЕКОЛОГІЧНИЙ БІОСФЕРНИЙ ЗАПОВІДНИК (to the left) and CHORNOBYL RADIATION AND ECOLOGICAL BIOSPHERE RESERVE (to the right); above is the mint mark of the NBU’s Banknote Printing and Minting Works; below is the coin’s issue year – 2025.

Reverse: against an outline of a landscape scene is an European elk (pad-printed), above there is a legend against a smooth background: ЛОСЬ / ЄВРОПЕЙСЬКИЙ (European elk) / ALCES ALCES; above is an elk cow with a cub.