From 1875 to 1889, the Dutch mints minted gold guilders, preferably coins with nominal values of 5 and 10 guilders. Therefore, these coins bearing the image of the then Dutch King Willem III were in circulation in very large numbers, so that many examples of these coins are still to be found today. What was once solely and exclusively for the purposes of payment and trade is now a coveted collectors and investment item.

Design and motif of the Dutch guilder

The coin, which has a fineness of 900/1000, shows the image of the Dutch King Willem III on the motif side. (Head of State from 1849 to 1890). Above the profile of the monarch, there is an inscription with the Dutch words “GOD ZIJ MET ONS”, which in English means “God be with us”. The name of the king “KONIG WILLEM DE DERDE” (King Willem III) can be read below the portrait. The two inscriptions are separated from each other by two five-pronged stars. These stars were kept relatively small in the first year of issue 1875 and only increased in size from 1876 to 1889. The edge of this coin is dotted.

The back shows the crowned coat of arms of the Netherlands, at the cetera of which there is a heraldic lion with a crown, a sword and arrows. The coat of arms is flanked by the nominal value of the coin, ’10 G’. The year of issue “1875” has been engraved above of the coat of arms, while country of issue forms the rest of the inscription. The inscription “KONINGRIJK DER NEDERLANDEN” (Kingdom of the Netherlands) can be read in a counter-clockwise direction along the outside of the coin and in a counter-clockwise direction from 11 until 1 o’clock. This inscription is retrograde, i.e. it is read from the outside of the coin instead of from the inside. Between the inscription and coats of arms, there is a mace to the left and a mercury caduceus to the right. Both objects are traditional heraldic symbols and represent the power of the state and of the army (mace) and trade (mercury caduceus). As a colonial and commercial power of the time, these were two significant areas within the kingdom.