Easter would not be Easter without bunnies, and there was no one better at depicting the adorable creatures than German painter Albrecht Dürer. The image that adorns our delightful Easter Coin 2026 is taken from Dürer’s woodcut The Holy Family with Three Hares (circa 1497). The original can be seen at the Albertina Museum in Vienna, which celebrates its 250th anniversary in 2026.
With Dürer’s characteristic attention to detail, in a heartwarming scene to welcome spring, one hare hops happily while a second cleans its paw and a third peeks out from behind its ear. The trio of hares symbolises both the Holy Trinity and fertility. Unlike in his later Young Hare (1502), which is essentially a descendant of the three hares, Dürer’s focus here is not on lifelike representation but on a touch of interpersonal connection, as the middle hare places its paw on the shoulder of the one on the right in a manner that is as warm and gentle as spring itself. The hare does this while looking straight into our eyes, making it feel like the image we are looking at is looking back at us. This has the effect of transforming a mere tangle of lines into reality.
Albrecht Dürer the Younger was born on 21 May 1471 in Nuremberg and died there on 6 April 1528. The painter, graphic artist, mathematician and art theorist is considered one of the outstanding creative talents of the Renaissance. For half a millennium his reputation has remained intact and will no doubt continue to do so in the future. This is because Dürer conducted extensive studies on his subjects and their behaviour, making every effort to delve as deeply as possible into life – just one of many reasons why his work touches people so deeply.
Coin motif
The centre of the coin’s reverse features a section from Dürer’s woodcut The Holy Family with Three Hares, which has been specially adapted on the coin to place the hopping hare closer to the other two. All three are surrounded by vegetation, with Albrecht Dürer’s familiar monogram on the right. The nine-sided coin’s obverse show the nine coats of arms are arranged in a circle.
Dürer’s Three Bunnies is not to be confused with Dürer’s famous Young Hare, which featured on our Easter Coin 2016. The latter is still available in copper version.
| Product No. | 28208 |
| Date of Issue | 25 February 2026 |
| Quality | Uncirculated |
| Series | Easter coins |
| Occasion | Easter |
| Face Value | 5 Euro |
| Diameter | 28.50 mm |
| Coin Design | Helmut Andexlinger, Anna Schlindner, Rebecca Wilding |
| Alloy | Copper Cu 999 |
| Total Weight | 8.90 g |
| Packaging | Comes without packaging |
| Mintage (Uncirculated) | 200,000 |
| Mintage (Special Uncirculated) | 50,000 |
