Tweede gesticht van de strafkolonie Veenhuizen, huismunt geslagen op last van de Maatschappij van Weldadigheid ter waarde van ½ cent 1818 - 1859

This is a half-cent coin made for the Veenhuizen penal colony in the Netherlands. Its creation speaks to the complex social engineering of the 19th century. Established by the Maatschappij van Weldadigheid, or Society of Benevolence, the colony aimed to 're-educate' the poor and vagrant through agriculture and discipline. These coins were used internally, controlling the inmates' economic activity and preventing outside trade. They symbolize a system where even the smallest aspects of life were regimented. The coins served as a constant reminder of their confined status, a physical manifestation of their dependence on the institution. What does it mean to offer benevolence through incarceration? This coin invites us to reflect on the blurred lines between charity, control, and the human cost of utopian experiments.