1 gulden

The coin's story

This guilder in 920 thousandths silver was struck in 1794, at the end of the Republic of the United Provinces, for the Dutch West Indies. In 1792, the administration of the West Indies asked to have coins struck as for the East Indies, the request was granted by a resolution of 31 December 1793. The coin follows the guilder of the Generality, struck in Utrecht, with a W for West-Indië below the arms. It was meant to circulate at a 20% premium, though it is not known whether it did, at any rate, 1,200 of these guilders were shipped to the Gold Coast, in Africa. The reverse shows the Dutch Maiden leaning on the Bible, holding a spear topped by the cap of liberty. The 1794 date was struck in 14,025 pieces.