Gelderse korte van Philips II, 1555-1598 1558 - 1565

Editor: Here we have a "Gelderse korte van Philips II" dating from around 1558 to 1565. It is a print on metal, depicting the profile of Philip II of Spain. The condition is worn and its rather small. What strikes you when you look at this piece? Curator: It's fascinating to consider the social context surrounding this coin. Not merely an image of a King, but an object mass-produced, distributed, handled daily by merchants, laborers, perhaps even used for gambling. How did the very act of this coin being traded by these people shape and potentially erode his power and image? Editor: That’s a really interesting take! I was focused on it simply being a portrait but its circulation could definitely impact opinions. Was the minting process of these coins standardised? Curator: Exactly. Think about the labour involved in minting it, the availability of metal, and the technologies utilized. Standardisation yes, yet, consider that this coin may well have been made locally and therefore questions around access to resources like silver, copper and so on emerge which will tell us more about power at the local level. Editor: So it's less about the King’s individual story and more about the materials, production, and how people interacted with it as an object? Curator: Precisely. How it circulated, who handled it, what that labor looked like. Those details challenge the dominant narrative we usually get about monarchs. It humanizes, and at the same time it forces questions about historical labour standards and equity. Editor: I never considered how everyday objects can also be historical records of labor and social dynamics. I see this coin in a new light! Curator: Materiality matters! These small objects speak volumes about the larger systems at play.