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1 Stiver Siege of 1577

Issuer City of Breda
Year 1577
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Weight 6.0 g
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Obverse description Within a beaded inner circle, the city name BREDA is inscribed in two lines across the field, reading BRE / DAE in large raised letters. A small crowned stamp or countermark appears above at the top of the inner circle. The surrounding outer legend reads NECESSITATIS · ERGO · 1577 in Latin, distributed around the circumference of the coin, separated by stops. The overall execution is characteristic of hastily produced siege coinage, with irregular flan shape and rough die work consistent with emergency wartime production.
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Reverse description The reverse is entirely blank, presenting a plain, unworked tin surface with no design, legend, or decorative elements, as is typical of emergency siege coinage produced under wartime constraints. The surface shows oxidation and patination consistent with aged tin.
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Additional information

Breda fell under Spanish siege in 1576–1577 during the Eighty Years' War, and the city's administration — cut off from normal coin supply — authorized emergency tin pieces to keep local commerce functioning inside the walls. Tin was a deliberate choice of desperation: the metal had almost no intrinsic value, which made hoarding pointless and encouraged the coins to actually circulate.

Korchnak 108a distinguishes this variety from related siege issues by specific die characteristics. Tin corrodes aggressively, and survivors in anything above heavily worn condition are genuinely scarce.

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