2 Stuiver `Double Stuiver`

Zierikzee endured a Spanish siege from 1575 into 1576, and like many besieged Dutch towns of the period, the municipal authorities improvised coinage from whatever materials were at hand when silver ran out. Pewter — an alloy of tin with trace lead and antimony — was the metal of last resort, struck under emergency authorization to pay troops and sustain commerce within the walls. The town fell to Mondragon's forces in July 1576.

Pewter corrodes aggressively in soil and damp conditions, which accounts for the near-universal surface degradation seen on surviving examples.