20 Kreutzers

Bern struck this issue during a period when the city-republic's monetary policy was increasingly strained by the costs of maintaining mercenary contingents and funding the defensive infrastructure demanded by the Thirty Years' War's long aftermath. The 20 Kreuzer denomination occupied an awkward middle register in the Swiss cantonal hierarchy — too large for daily market use, too small for major commercial settlement — which likely kept this type from circulating aggressively, explaining why survivors often retain respectable surfaces.