Gelderse stuiver, 1764 1764

Curator: Here we have a 'Gelderse Stuiver' from 1764, representing the province of Gelderland. Editor: My first thought? Austerity. There’s something almost brutally functional about its design. It looks worn, doesn't it? A bit battered by history, literally touched by countless hands exchanging it. Curator: Indeed. What strikes me is its tangible connection to daily life back then. Each coin an imprint of governance pressed into being. Look at how the print and the metal interplay. What do you think it tells us about Gelderland society at the time? Editor: Well, consider the material: metal, obviously chosen for durability, reflects a society built around trade and enduring value, but also exploitation of mining labor to mint the coin itself. It’s meant to last. Then you've got the relative simplicity of the design. This suggests function trumping pure aesthetics; these floral details have become hard to make out, revealing a practicality rooted in accessibility for everyone. It embodies the Baroque period meeting Dutch Golden Age pragmatism, maybe? Curator: Perhaps. And you’ve highlighted the physical wear and tear. Each scratch, a ghostly echo of its past transactions, its past life within the province of Gelderland. It calls into question value and labour! The sheer weight of a denomination such as the "stuiver". Makes one ponder the societal meaning of commerce itself. Editor: Precisely! Its form also raises interesting questions. This object offers us a glimpse into an era defined by mercantilism and colonial ambitions but seen from an "everyday" item: it encapsulates broad economic processes into the physical scale and value of everyday existence, not always pretty or gilded. This tiny circle becomes unexpectedly immense when thinking of the power embedded in minting currency. It even has this nick in its side. I see this damage as if the object has become like us over the years, imperfect and all the more beautiful. Curator: Yes! This "flaw" makes it more real, more human... it now whispers a song! Editor: Indeed, It shifts perspective, literally handing us a bit of history! Curator: Absolutely, it offers a new kind of tactility towards an idea!