Derde gesticht van de kolonie Veenhuizen, huismunt geslagen op last van de Maatschappij van Weldadigheid ter waarde van vijf cent 1818 - 1859

This anonymous coin, struck for the Veenhuizen colony, presents a stark study in societal control and economic pragmatism. Its circular form, stamped with identifiers and a denomination of five cents, immediately evokes a sense of enclosure and restriction. The coin's materiality and texture speak to its function within a closed system, the Veenhuizen colony, where it facilitated internal exchange. The use of a local currency challenges conventional economic structures, creating a self-contained environment governed by the colony’s internal rules and values. The arrangement of letters and numbers is not merely functional; they're structural elements, establishing a hierarchy of information and control. Each marking serves as a signifier, pointing to the regimented structure of the colony and the labor expected of its inhabitants. This coin, therefore, acts as a material and symbolic representation of the power dynamics inherent in the colony's design, and its broader implications for social engineering.