Austria has a long gold tradition and still mints a variety of coins that are legal tender in Austria at face value; among the most popular is the .9999 Vienna Philharmonic coin, which is minted in denominations of 1 ounce, ½ ounce, ¼ ounce, and 1/10 ounce. These are available at any bank in Austria and are generally available quite cheaply despite the fact that demand has skyrocketed recently; sales increased 544% in the first two months of 2009. Purchasing coins is a simple process requiring no documentation or identification, and once the purchase is complete, Vienna has a variety of secure storage facilities; one of the oldest and most advanced is Das Safe, well located on Auerspergstrasse, close to many major banks and a coin store.

Founded in 1983, Das Safe offers named and anonymous safes, with approximately 1,000 total safes under its roof. The facility is high-tech and somewhat reminiscent of the Swiss bank scene from The Bourne Identity, replete with polite, well-dressed, tough-looking security officers in the building’s lobby. Security cameras are present, but the footage is for immediate surveillance purposes only and is never recorded.

We rate the security at Das Safe as satisfactory. The building itself is almost castle-like, one of the oldest structures in Vienna’s 1st district, located at the intersection of two fairly busy streets… the façade suggests it may be a museum of some sort, and you could walk past it . three or four times before noticing the nondescript “Das Safe” sign above the odd entrance.

For customer convenience and privacy, there is an adjacent underground parking structure at the rear of the building. Upon entering Das Safe, you’ll find a spacious lobby and several desks for the facility’s managers, similar to how banks have loan officers scattered across the floor of their main branches. Around a corner is a security booth, though no verbal exchange is necessary. You are armed with your mailbox number/password combination, and this is all that is required to gain entry.

Entering the correct sequence will open the bulletproof glass doors. Once inside, the doors behind you close securely before the next pair of doors open – the Das Safe override to lock away would-be thieves. Within seconds, the next set of doors opens, leading you down a hallway to the security room.

Annual fees range from 480 euros to more than 3,500 for anonymous boxes, although the smallest box can hold more than 4,000 one-ounce philharmonics.