The duit was the workhorse of VOC trade coinage in the Indonesian archipelago, where small-denomination copper issues dominated everyday transactions. A silver duit, however, is a different animal entirely — KM#70a represents an anomalous and short-lived experiment in silver composition for a denomination almost universally struck in copper throughout the VOC period. The Holland provincial issues were among the most heavily counterfeited in circulation, partly driving quality-control variants.
The VOC's Batavia administration frequently complained to the Heeren XVII about substandard planchets arriving from Dutch mints.
The duit was the workhorse of VOC trade coinage in the Indonesian archipelago, where small-denomination copper issues dominated everyday transactions. A silver duit, however, is a different animal entirely — KM#70a represents an anomalous and short-lived experiment in silver composition for a denomination almost universally struck in copper throughout the VOC period. The Holland provincial issues were among the most heavily counterfeited in circulation, partly driving quality-control variants.
The VOC's Batavia administration frequently complained to the Heeren XVII about substandard planchets arriving from Dutch mints.