Willemstad/Philipsburg:--- The Centrale Bank van Curaçao en Sint Maarten is issuing a 5-guilder silver commemorative coin honoring the city of Willemstad and marking its 25th anniversary as a World Heritage site. The historic area of Willemstad has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1997, reason enough to honor Curaçao's capital with a commemorative coin in 2023.
Willemstad is one of a select few World Heritage Cities that have been awarded this special status because of their universal cultural and historical value. Willemstad is characterized by its historic neighborhoods, cultural diversity, unique urban architecture, and over 700 multicolored monuments. The city is also unique as a historic Caribbean seaport.
The commemorative coin will be produced by the Royal Dutch Mint. Its design parallels that of the Dutch commemorative coin for which His Majesty King Willem-Alexander made the first strike here in Curaçao today. As the coin will celebrate Curaçao's important UNESCO World Heritage Sites, a public call was made to designers/artists in Curaçao to design both the euro and NAf. coins. The winning design is by Curaçaoan artist Cleo Maxime de Brabander. The obverse shows King Willem-Alexander with the Queen Juliana Bridge in Willemstad in the background. Four stars at the top of the obverse side symbolize the four countries that comprise the Kingdom of the Netherlands: Curaçao, Aruba, Sint Maarten, and the Netherlands. The reverse features a cityscape showing the four neighborhoods that make up the UNESCO World Heritage Site: Punda, Otrobanda, Scharloo, and Pietermaai. The design features key monuments, including the Handelskade, the Mikvé Israel-Emanuel synagogue in Punda, Fort Amsterdam, and the Emanu-él temple, which marks the border of the Pietermaai neighborhood.
The coin is minted in the highest quality Silver Proof and comes in a presentation case, with a Certificate of Authenticity. The mintage is limited to 500 pieces. The Willemstad coin will also be legal tender in Curaçao and Sint Maarten, with a nominal value of 5 guilders. This will be one of the last commemorative coins to be issued in our current currency, the Netherlands Antilles guilder.
Sales will begin later this year. Announcements will be made on CBCS social media channels and on our website: https://www.centralbank.cw/functions/banknotes-coins.
Willemstad, February 2, 2023
CENTRALE BANK VAN CURAÇAO EN SINT MAARTEN
