Tweede gesticht van de kolonie Veenhuizen, huismunt geslagen op last van de Maatschappij van Weldadigheid ter waarde van 1 cent 1818 - 1859

Curator: Here we have a coin, “Tweede gesticht van de kolonie Veenhuizen, huismunt geslagen op last van de Maatschappij van Weldadigheid ter waarde van 1 cent." It's an engraved piece of metal, dating from between 1818 and 1859. Editor: It’s a poignant object. Something about the roughness and wear suggests so much difficult labour. What a life it must have had passing from hand to hand! Curator: Precisely. The wear tells a story of economic and social control. These coins, produced for use within the Veenhuizen colony, represent an entire system designed to manage poverty through labour and reform. Think of the materiality: cheap metal, easily stamped. Editor: That system has troubling connotations. I wonder about the people forced to use it. Veenhuizen was essentially a penal colony, where vagrants, orphans, and beggars were sent under the guise of welfare. It reveals a lot about 19th-century attitudes towards social inequality. Curator: Absolutely. Consider the Maatschappij van Weldadigheid—the Society of Benevolence—that commissioned the coin. On one hand, an attempt to offer solutions to poverty; on the other, creating an exploitative labour force. Editor: So, even something as seemingly simple as this 1 cent coin reveals complex narratives of social engineering, forced labour, and what was considered charity, even progress. The metal and the engraving are not neutral, they are evidence of policies with lasting impacts on lives. Curator: Yes, exactly! Examining the materials and method allows us to dissect those power structures inherent in its creation and use. Editor: A single cent becomes a powerful reminder of systemic injustice disguised as charity. It asks us to reflect on what strategies we still implement today under similar narratives. Curator: Looking at this small coin has opened up such a range of interconnected thoughts. From material analysis to larger socio-political contexts. Editor: I’ll definitely remember it now with the context of exploitation and labour behind its creation.