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1/2 Guilder - George III
| Issuer | Demerara and Essequibo |
|---|---|
| Year | 1816 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1/2 Guilder |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | The fraction 1/2, representing the half-guilder denomination, is displayed prominently in the centre of the field, surmounted by a heraldic crown. The central device is flanked by two symmetrical sprays of oak leaves and acorns tied at the base with a ribbon bow. The circumferential legend UNITED COLONY OF DEMERARY & ESSEQUIBO arcs around the upper portion, while the date 1816 appears in the lower exergual area, all within a dentillated border. |
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| Additional information |
Demerara and Essequibo were administered as a single British colonial unit following the formal cession from the Dutch in 1814, but the monetary system lagged well behind the political transfer. The Dutch guilder remained the unit of account, and this 1816 issue was struck specifically to bridge that gap — British authority, Dutch denomination, circulating among a population still conducting daily commerce in the old currency.
The Prid#16 reference places this among the British colonial pattern and proof documentation, and surviving examples in any grade are scarce. The territory merged with Berbice to form British Guiana in 1831, after which guilder-denominated coinage became obsolete almost immediately.