After Twelve Provinces, and Twelve Castles, the Royal Dutch Mint embarks on a silver Ducat look at Twelve Gates

In 2015, the Royal Dutch Mint debuted its twelve-coin series of silver ducats themed around the same number of provinces that make up the Netherlands. Each one was struck in the classic ducat format of 28.25 grams of 0.873 fineness silver, to a proof finish. In a nod to historical precedent, (each ducat featured a standing knight), they had on their reverse a standing historical figure associated with the province, holding a shield with the province coat-of-arms upon it.

After that series ended in 2019, the RDM immediately set off on a new twelve-issue series in the same format, this time themed around the many famous castles that are spread around this lowland European nation. Here, historical precedent was more closely followed, and in front of the subject stood the same historical figure, the knight Godard de Ginkell, although the differing shields remained. It’s this latter style that the mints new ducat series, in this format, follows.

Called ‘Dutch Gates and Access Roads’ it doesn’t immediately inspire confidence it’s going to be an interesting one, but fortunately, Dutch history permeates everywhere, and it’s off to a good start with the two issues we see here. The person chosen to anchor the twelve coins is Duke Karel van Egmond (Charles II, Duke of Guelders), who was active in the 1515-23 Frisian peasant rebellion, and the Guelders wars from the early 16th century. He was the last independent feudal ruler of the Netherlands. The shields continue to vary.

The first issue was Catharijnepoort in Utrecht, one of the four main city gates, shown on the coin in its 1625 rebuild form. The Utracht emblem adorns the shield, as does the inscription ‘TRAJ.’. The second and latest issue depicts the Amsterdamse Poort in Haarlem. This was originally erected in the 14th century, and still stands to this day, so many more will recognise the depiction on the coin. Here the shield is emblazoned with the emblem of North Holland, also defined by the inscription ‘HOL SEP’.

The obverse is a common one, and is identical to that of the two earlier series, excepting the date, of course. The inscription by the edge, ‘CONCORDIA RES PARVAE CRESCUNT’, means Unity makes Strength. The centre is taken up with the national coat of arms of the Netherlands, under the Royal Crown. Packaging is a shallower version of the small tin introduced with Dutch Castles. The mintage has fallen further, now set at 1,750 pieces. They’re available to order now.

AMSTERDAMSE POORT (MINTS DESCRIPTION)

The impressive Amsterdamse Poort, now a national monument, can be found in the city of Haarlem. This gate, which dates from the 14th century, is the only one of twelve medieval gates in Haarlem still standing. The gate was originally used as a passage to Amsterdam. People usually travelled through the gate and arrived at the Haarlemmerpoort in the heart of Amsterdam, within 4 hours on foot.

The Amsterdamse Poort, also known as the Spaarnwouderpoort, is the first Haarlem gate to ever get mentioned in a document. Historians have found remains of ancient city walls at the foot of the gate. The famous Kenau Simonsdochter Hasselaer is said to have stood on the walls at the gate during the Spanish attack in the siege of Haarlem. She is a Dutch folk hero, known for her fearless defense of Haarlem against Spanish invaders. It’s also quite remarkable that this gate withstood the siege of Haarlem very well: no significant damage was found. The Amsterdamse Poort in Haarlem is still impressive to see today.

The gate consists of two towers that defended the passage. They’re connected to a front gate, located a bit lower and also surrounded by two round towers. The presence of a Burgundian city coat of arms and the Austria coat of arms indicates that the front gate was placed somewhere in the 15th century.

CATHARIJNEPOORT UTRECHT (MINTS DESCRIPTION)

In the Middle Ages, Utrecht slowly started to grow into a large city. And in order to easily reach the city, four main entrances to the city were built. One of these entrances was the Catharijnepoort. This gate stood on the west side of the city, near the current Vredenburg. It was named after the adjacent monastery, which was dedicated to Saint Catherine.

Although there is no image of the medieval gate, several sources say it was large and robust: the Catharijnepoort grew into the largest and best defensible gate in Utrecht. We also know that this gate was the oldest known storage place of the Utrecht city rights. In 1528, Charles V came to power: he has a large castle, named Vredenburg, built within the walls of the city. The Catharijnepoort was located outside the castle, directly in the shooting range of the city canons. Therefore, the gate is almost completely demolished, even though plans to rebuild it elsewhere are made. These plans are put into action in 1625: a new Catharijnepoort is being built. However, this is eventually also demolished in 1830, together with the rest of the Utrecht city defense.

On the Zilveren Dukaat “Catharijnepoort Utrecht” the new gate is shown, as it was designed by Paulus Moreelse in 1625. Original drawings of this gate can be admired in the archives of Utrecht.

DENOMINATION COMPOSITION DIAMETER FINISH MINTAGE
Undenominated 28.25 g of 0.873 silver 40.0 mm Proof 1,750