The Wiener Riesenrad is a Ferris wheel at the entrance of the Prater amusement park in Leopoldstadt, the 2nd district of Austria’s capital Vienna. It was one of the earliest Ferris wheels, erected in 1897 to celebrate Emperor Franz Josef I’s golden Jubilee. The Riesenrad is now one of Vienna’s most popular tourist attractions, and symbolises the district as well as the city for many people. The wheel originally had 30 gondolas, but was severely damaged in the Second World War, and when it was rebuilt, only 15 gondolas were replaced. The spokes are steel cables, in tension, and the wheel is driven by a circumferential cable which leaves the wheel and passes through the drive mechanism under the base. The Riesenrad famously appeared in the post-war film noir The Third Man. It is also featured in the 1987 James Bond film, The Living Daylights, and appears prominently in Max Ophuls’ Letter from an Unknown Woman.
Release Dates
2009 (2)
Features
- Coin Alloy Name: Alpaca 12
- Coin Alloy Color: silver
- Coin Diameter: 31,00
- Coin Thickness: 2,25
- Coin Edge: serrated, fine
- City: VIENNA
- Country: Austria
- Available: no
- Location: VIENNA, Austria