2 Euro BU

The name “Maltese ox” does not refer to a separate zoological species, but to a traditional Maltese cattle population. “Ox” primarily refers to the former use of male, often castrated animals as draught animals. However, the term is also used in a broader sense for the native cattle.

Cattle long performed tasks in Maltese agriculture that were later taken over by machines. They pulled ploughs and carts, serving both field work and the transport of agricultural produce. They also provided milk, meat and manure. Native livestock were adapted to local conditions, including the warm, dry climate, the limited grazing areas and the occasionally scarce supply of feed. For smaller, labour-intensive farms, their versatility was more important than the highest possible performance in just one area.

With the mechanisation of agriculture, cattle lost their function as working animals. At the same time, breeds bred more specifically for milk or meat production were introduced. Displacement and crossbreeding caused the population of the traditional type to decline. In the case of the very small number of animals remaining, there is also a risk of genetic diversity being lost. The preservation of such a breed therefore requires not only the protection of individual animals, but also planned breeding with a sufficient number of lines that are independent of one another.

Old livestock breeds are part of the agricultural cultural heritage because their development is closely linked to former economic systems and the everyday life of rural communities. At the same time, their genetic characteristics may remain of interest for animal breeding, for example adaptations to heat, sparse feed or local husbandry conditions. The coin’s subject thus connects the memory of Malta’s traditional agriculture with the present-day protection of animal genetic resources. The choice of an everyday farm animal draws attention to a part of the country’s history that otherwise appears less often on official commemorative coins.