Zierikzee, on the island of Schouwen-Duiveland in Zeeland, was besieged by Spanish forces under Mondragon from October 1575 through July 1576. Siege coinage was struck from whatever silver the garrison could commandeer — plate, jewelry, cut bullion — hammered into square klippe flans because proper round blanks required equipment the defenders didn't have. This piece belongs to that emergency production, authorized by the besieged town's own magistrates as Spanish troops held the surrounding waters.
The garrison surrendered on terms in July 1576. Surviving siege issues are scarce simply because the quantities struck were small and the circumstances of their production left them outside normal commercial channels.
Zierikzee, on the island of Schouwen-Duiveland in Zeeland, was besieged by Spanish forces under Mondragon from October 1575 through July 1576. Siege coinage was struck from whatever silver the garrison could commandeer — plate, jewelry, cut bullion — hammered into square klippe flans because proper round blanks required equipment the defenders didn't have. This piece belongs to that emergency production, authorized by the besieged town's own magistrates as Spanish troops held the surrounding waters.
The garrison surrendered on terms in July 1576. Surviving siege issues are scarce simply because the quantities struck were small and the circumstances of their production left them outside normal commercial channels.