20 euro – Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin

Nicholas von Jacquin was a true European. Born in Leiden, Holland, in 1727, he moved to Vienna, where he was commissioned by the Emperor Franz (husband of Maria Theresa) to lead a natural science expedition into the Caribbean. Between 1754 and 1759 he visited many Caribbean islands like St. Vincent, Grenada, Aruba, St. Kitts, Haiti, Jamaica and Cuba, as well as exploring the coastal regions of Venezuela and Columbia. He sent back seven collections of plants, animal and artefacts to Vienna. Jacquin is regarded as the initiator of the Austrian expeditions of exploration. The coin shows Jacquin’s portrait together with "Iris Variegata", one of his many discoveries. The reverse depicts him at work in the Caribbean cataloguing his botanical discoveries.