3 Gulden date obverse, Piedfort of double weight

Piedforts — struck at double the standard planchet thickness using the same working dies as regular circulation issues — were produced almost exclusively for presentation purposes in the Dutch Republic. Zeeland's 1694 emission almost certainly served as an official gift or cabinet piece rather than anything approaching commerce. The province had a long tradition of issuing such prestige strikes for foreign dignitaries and civic officials.

By 1694, the Dutch Republic was deep into the Nine Years' War, with William III's coalition straining provincial finances considerably. That Zeeland bothered with a piedfort at all in this fiscal climate suggests a specific diplomatic occasion, though the recipient is not recorded in the standard references.