Recently we had an opportunity to spend $60,500 on the special set of the Netherlands coins. They were sold in the XIX Triton auction by CNG (Dr. Lawrence A. Adams Collection): 1. Middelburg 1573 klippe ducat - sold for $14,000 ($16,940 incl. BP) http://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=301721 2. Middelburg 1574 klippe ducat (a commemorative piece) - sold for $11,000 ($13,310 incl. BP) http://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=301722 3. Amsterdam 1673 piedfort ducat - sold for $13,000 ($15,730 incl. BP) http://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=301727 4. Utrecht 1684 ducat with the Batavia countermark - sold for $12,000 ($14,520 incl. BP) http://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=301748 Over $60k for 4 coins?! Yes, the Netherlands gold ducats have got potential
Well, I may tell you a bit about them then. The first one of coins you like was minted in 1673 in a temporary mint in Amsterdam. The Holland provincial mint was moved from Dordrecht to Amsterdam due to the French invasion in 1672. Amsterdam was a safer location simply. Amsterdam piedfort ducat was the only date of the Holland (province) gold ducats minted outside the official mint (!). They were minted in a private atelier of Christophel Adolphi in Amsterdam. It was because in this time Adolphi had mint presses, meanwhile in the official mint ducats were still hammered (minted witha hammer). What makes this coin special - next to its condition, rarity and provenience - is a lettered egde. You may read on the edge "D : GEDACHTENIS . V : D : MUNTE . V : AMSTERDAM", means "In memory of the Amsterdam mint".
The second coin, the Utrecht 1684 is special because of the countermark "B", means Batavia. Batavia (Jakarta today) was a main city of the Dutch East India Company, known as the VOC from its Dutch name. Because the Netherlands gold ducats were trade coins, invented to pay in international trade, a large number of them was transferred to Batavia on ships. The fleet was coming back to Europe with precious spices, pepper, silk, etc. As for the coin, the value of the Netherlands gold ducats in the VOC was higher than their value in the Netherlands. To protect coins from being smuggled on ships by the crew, in August 1686 the VOC ordered that 20,000 Dutch gold ducats deposited in the VOC Treasury be marked with the "B" mark for Batavia. In 1700 another 49,495 ducats were marked with the “B” countermark. However because the countermarked ducats were falsified they did not succeed as the VOC expected. Gold ducats with the "B" countermark are very rare and sold for high prices. The example sold recently in CNG auction was sold previously in Spink-Taisei auction 19, on February 23, 1995 (R.J. Ford Collection) for $8,970.
Thanks! Your extensive knowledge truly illuminates the fascinating history of these issues. I am not clear on one point: "... the value of the Netherlands gold ducats in the VOC was higher than their value in the Netherlands." The value of a gold coin is its value. That is what a standard is. A meter is one meter long. In the Netherlands, the coins bought this or that. In the East Indies, they bought other stuff. I do not understand where the margin for arbitrage could be. Thanks.
Hi kaparthy, thank you for your question. It is a very interesting issue indeed. In fact, it is pretty simple. Let me give you an example using a florin, which is denomination similar to gold ducat. Florins were almost always heavier than ducats, and depending on the issuing authority florins also came in various weights while ducats were always issued with one standard weight of 3.5 gm. So we cannot say that a florin was always the same value, expressed in gold. On the other hand, we can say it about gold ducats - this is why gold ducats were well accepted by merchants worldwide. Gold ducat means always about 3.5 gm of .986 gold. The price of silver or gold used for minting coins was different in a different countries. Moreover, in some time periods some mints minted only silver coins, because ratio of silver to gold was very low, so minting silver coins brought larger profits for the mint than minting gold coins. Value of a single coin was different in various countries. For example, in the 17th century in Poland the price of a gold ducat was higher than abroad. So all international transactions (export from Poland) were made in gold. As a result, in this time there was a way much more Netherlands ducats in use in Poland, than in The Netherlands! In Batavia gold ducats were accepted with a slightly higher value (by 2 stivers) than in Low Countries, so these coins were smuggled on ships by the crew. It is a long story to explain why they had to do it, it's enough to say that being hired on the ship cost a fortune. Smuggling coins to the VOC reduced these costs a bit. When they reached Batavia, they immediately deposited all the money they have, means also smuggled coins. The cashier gave the bill of exchange to everyone who deposited coins. In such document it was also said that such and such amount of money has to be paid after coming back to Europe. Those exchange bills were paid in cash at the higher local rate exchange in Batavia. Gold ducats gave not so high profit; mostly silver ducatoons in hundreds were smuggled in small boxes by private persons. At the end an intersting issue of the price of a ducat in the same country. Because bad money drives out good, the value of good coins was always increasing, meanwhile debased coins were accepted for a lower and lower rates. As an example, you may find some handbooks for the 17th-19th money changers in Poland, with double values in it: in "good" money and in "bad", means debased money. Gold ducats were always found to be good money, so they were wanted everywhere. Already in early period the value of gold ducats in The Netherlands changed rapidly in time. I am not sure if you realize that in time period from 1574 to 1606 in The Netherlands the value of the ducat almost doubled. In Poland one ducat cost 80 groschen in 1619, in the following year it was raised to 120 groschen, in 1622 to 140 groschen and finally in 1628 to 160 groschen. So the price was doubled in 9 years! It does not mean that the same exchanged rates were made in all countries. They were not. And this is why the value of the same coin (denomination) was different in various countries.
Mike your making a false assumption. Back then there were many standards, not just one like there is today. Silver and gold both had different values in different countries. And not only that there wasn't even 1 standard when it came to weight. You could even have different standards for weight within a single country as sometimes each city had its own standard. Here is an example of what I mean. The marc for example. Some won't know what a marc even is, but it was a unit of weight, and it was used almost everywhere, at least the name was. We would think of it as a pound with 1 pound being 2 marcs. And when coins were minted the laws of the time dictated that xx number coins be minted from each marc of gold or silver. With Netherlands ducats for example each marc of gold had to produce 70 ducats. And that was fine for the Netherlands.But when it came to exactly how much a marc was, well that depended on where you were at the time. Here is what I mean, the following table shows just how much a marc was in different places - at the same time. Cologne = 2 marc = 467.620 grams French = 2 marc = 489.506 Aachen = 32 loth = 467.040 Amsterdam troy = 2 mark = 492.168 Antwerp = 2 mark = 468.800 Hamburg = 512 pennyweight = 484.690 Lisbon = 2 marcas = 459.100 Lucerne = medical pound = 357.950 Munich = 560.000 Naples = 12 ounces = 320.759 Stockholm = 425.34 As you can see there is considerable difference, just from those places alone. And in other cities it was different still. The weight unit of grams were the same everywhere, but the marc, the marc is what really mattered because that was the weight unit specified in the various laws of various countries as to exactly how many coins had to be minted per each marc. So a marc of gold in Amstrerdam was a different weight than a marc of gold in Antwerp. So you had two different sets of standards establishing values. There was the value of the gold and silver itself, which was different in each country, and you had different standards of weight on top of that. So every different gold coin, from every different country, had a different value everywhere you went.
They are nice coins, but expeeensive. They went way above the initial estimate. I imagine the market for these pieces is small and specialized. Who would be the bidders? Wealthy Dutch numismatists? Nice coins, anyway. They are interesting pieces of history. guy
Well done! Especially the provenience of these pieces. And pictures! I would just add a picture of the lettered edge (from the side) of the Amsterdam piedfort ducat.
As a general rule estimates given by auction houses are pretty much always low, and quite intentionally so. Now I've never heard or read of an auction house openly admitting this, but simple observation of estimates and results pretty much proves the point. Are there ever exceptions ? Yes, of course there are. But exceptions do not disprove the rule. As for the market being small and specialized, yeah maybe so. But is not the market for any expensive coin not small and specialized ? And yet they always sell it seems, so it must not be too small or too specialized. Again, simple observation. Who are they ? Well, we often find that out the next time they are sold, but sometimes we never do. But in the end does it matter if we know who they are or not ? The only thing that really matters is that they are bought and sold, and successfully so. There are always, and always will be, buyers for coins that are truly exceptional and/or scarce - always.
I'd like to append a story of two other coins from the set - so-called siege ducats klippes, minted by the Middelburg mint. In fact these coins are not ducats, but crowns. They were minted with a single, double, quadruple and probably also a triple weight of a ducat, means about 3.5, 7.0, 14 and probably also 10.5 gm. Coins sold in the recent CNG auction are single klippe "ducats", but they differ significantly. The first one (with the date of 1573) is minted on January 20, 1574/3, with most intended to be offered as commemorative medals. The second coin was minted in March 1574/3, after the surrender, probably to meet payments to the victors. They are usually smaller and thinner than those minted in January. The history background of minting both Middelburg klippe "ducats" is not less important than of two other coins from this set. I'd say it's even more significant. And this is why: Middelburg klippes are siege coins, but in fact Middelburg was not exposed to ordinary attack, nor was it truly under siege. The whole island where the city was located was blockaded during the years 1572 and 1573, by the Geuzen (privateers) vessels. It's worth mentioning that these privateers, so-called Geuzen, were known for their courage and fighting against much a bigger fleet. Thus Geuzen easily blocked the Spanish army in the city. What's more, all the sea deliveries of supplies - as well food as a weaponry - were destroyed or forced to retreat. It's not surprising that in this situation food supplies in the city shrinked quickly. Already in late 1572 situation of defenders in Middelburg was critical. Due to a very cold winter of 1572/73 a number of people died. In February 1573 the last attempt of the Spanish fleet to provide food supplies for the army staying in the city failed: a huge Spanish fleet of 83 ships (!) was defeated by Geuzen. Soon afterwards the Spanish garrison of the commander Mondragon surrendered. The situation in the city was reflected on the Middelburg gold siege coins. Middelburg suffered because of hunger. It is mentioned in the city chronicles as well as in the inscriptions on the reverse sides of several siege coins (quadruple and double pieces). One of such Dutch inscriptions says: "Toen ik werd geslagen, Middelburg werd belegerd. Zo van dat het volk aten van de honger paarden, honden, huinen door de noodzaak, katten, ratten, en de lijnzaad wafels in plaats van brood" ("When I was striking this coin, Middelburg was besieged. The people, pressed by hunger, ate horses, dogs, leather in need, cats, rats and linseed waffles instead of bread.”). Now you know a tragic story staying behind these coins.
