Silver Ducat “Kuinderburcht Bridge” 2023

Silver Ducats are commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Finance and are collector coins. The issue depicting Kuinderburcht Bridge is part and also the last issue of the ongoing series “Dutch castles”. Are you also collecting these silver coins?
 
Part 12: Special stronghold in Northern-Flevoland
The last part of the series may be the most outstanding one. There is no big and impressive castle to be found on the coin, but a modest bridge: the Kuinderburcht Bridge. However, the history behind this settlement is all the more interesting to discover.
 
Just over the border of the youngest province in the Netherlands, Flevoland, is a bridge. And it’s not just a bridge. There are sources from the 12^th century that speak about a bridge, the stronghold in Kuinre. In the 15^th and 16^th century, the area around the stronghold is referred to as “canals, a bridge, several living quarters, a gate, outbuildings and various defenses”. During a big investigation in the 40’s of the 20^th century, the foundations of a stronghold are found. This stronghold was the home of many different lords, known as the Lords of Kuinre. One of the first known residents of Kuinderburcht was Hendrik the Crane, a lord that executed raids in Friesland, resulting in various conflicts.
 
The Kuinderburcht Bridge was mostly known for the swampy ground in the area. That is why the lords manly lived from hunting and fishing. The hunting area got significantly smaller during the years, which caused the lords to shift their attention to levy toll on shipping on the Zuiderzee (the southern sea). The lords of Kuinre then proceed to control several trading routes that would go through the rivers Kuinder, de Vecht and de IJssel. Since 2020, many spots in the area of the bridge have special transparent panels with drawings on them. This makes it possible for people to see an object or happening that took place in the past and is no longer visible.
 
Knight Godard de Ginkell
As written in the Dutch Mint Act, a Silver Ducat must depict a knight in armour with a shield showing the province weapon in front of his left leg. Godard de Ginkell (1644 –1703) puts on the knight’s armour on all Silver Ducats in the series “Dutch Castles”. The historical knight is known in the Netherlands as Godard van Reede, but is named Godard de Ginkell in the United Kingdom thanks to his military earnings there. Discover Godard de Ginkell and other historical knights on our website.
 
Design
The obverse of the Silver Ducat “Kuinderburcht Bridge” depicts knight Godard de Ginkell in front of the famous structure. The province weapon of Friesland can be found on his shield. The inscription on this issue reads: “MO.NO.ARG.REG.BELGII. FLEVO”. “MO.NO.ARG.REG.BELGII.” is the Latin abbreviation for “Moneta Nova Argenta Regni Belgii”: New Silver coin of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. FLEVO stands for the province Flevoland.
 
On the reverse of the Silver Ducat, the national coat of arms of the Netherlands with the Royal Crown between the numbers of the year can be found. The inscription reads: “CONCORDIA RES PARVAE CRESCUNT”, Unity makes Strength. Here you can also find the mint mark and the privy mark.