The novel binary europium silicide Eu 3 Si 4 was synthesized from the elements. Its crystal structure is a derivative of the Ta 3 B 4 type: space group Immm, a=4.6164(4)A, b=3.9583(3)A, c=18.229(1)A, Z=2. In the structure, the silicon atoms form one-dimensional bands of condensed hexagons. Deviating from the prototype structure, a partial corrugation of the initially planar bands may be concluded from the analysis of the experimental electron density in the vicinity of the Si1 atoms. In the paramagnetic region, Eu 3 Si 4 shows a 4f 7 electronic configuration for the europium atoms. Two consecutive magnetic ordering transitions were found at 117 and 40K. The first one is attributed to a ferromagnetic ordering of the Eu2 atoms; the second one is caused by a ferromagnetic ordering of the Eu1 atoms resulting in a ferrimagnetic ground state with a net magnetization of 7μ B at 1.8K. The temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity reflects the metallic character of the investigated compound. Furthermore, the pronounced changes of the dρ/dT slope confirm the magnetic transitions. From bonding analysis with the electron localization function, Eu 3 Si 4 shows a Zintl-like character and its electronic count balance can be written as (Eu 1 . 8 3 + ) 3 (Si1 0 . 9 5 - ) 2 (Si2 1 . 8 - ) 2 , in good agreement with its magnetic behavior in the paramagnetic region.