Bezoek van kroonprins Willem Nicolaas Alexander aan 's Rijks Munt te Utrecht 1853 1853

This coin was made by Johannes Petrus Schouberg in 1853, probably struck from bronze using dies. We can see two very distinct sides: one commemorating Willem III, King of the Netherlands, and the other, a visit by Crown Prince Willem Nicolaas Alexander to the Dutch Mint in Utrecht. The coin’s production marks a marriage of art, craft, and industry. The artist's design is translated into a physical object through technical means. The die, skillfully engraved, would have been used in a coining press, a machine utilizing immense pressure to impress the design onto the metal. This process, while industrialized, still required a craftsman’s touch to ensure the final product's quality. Coinage, of course, has always been tied to power, labor, and exchange. It literally embodies economic systems. In this instance, it commemorates a royal visit to a state-run facility, reinforcing the link between the monarchy and national finance. The coin, in its materiality and manufacture, is a symbol of its time, encapsulating the era’s industrial progress and social structures.