Essequibo & Demerary 1816 3 guilder
The Essequibo and Demerary were originally two of three Dutch colonies along the coast of present-day Guyana. They were seized by the British to avoid having them fall into French hands after the French invasion of the Netherlands. They remained in British control through the 1830's, at which point the Netherlands and Great Britain formally divided the region between them, the British taking over the western portion. This mixed colonial origin shows in the coinage: Though the portrait of the British monarch is honored on the obverse, the denominations are clearly Dutch.
This coin is a three guilder, dated 1816. It was lot 20424 and sold on Sept 18, 2008 at the 2008 September Long Beach, CA World Coin Signature Auction #3002 for $2,530. The catalog description reads: "Demerary & Essequibo. George III 3 Guilders 1816, MS61 NGC, ex Remick Collection, a Choice original coin with very bold features and light attractive toning. Very scarce type in mint state. For the 1816 issues, the colony name order was switched from Essequibo & Demerary. From the Dr. Patrick Tan Collection."
Recorded mintage: 10,000.
Specification: 23.32 g, 0.816 fine silver.
Catalog reference: KM 15.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
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