Aruba 6 pcs UNC Coin Set—NEW KING, NO QUEEN!—5 10 25 Cents—1 5 Florins

Six coins. One island. The complete story of the Aruban florin under the current monarch, King Willem-Alexander in a single set — from the smallest 5 cent to the gold-toned 5 Florin, spanning four decades of design, two monarchs, and nine mint masters. Every denomination in everyday Aruban circulation, assembled in XF to UNC condition, struck at the Royal Dutch Mint in Utrecht. Years and mint marks are random across the set.

What's in the Set

• 5 Cents — KM# 1; nickel plated steel; 16 mm; 2 g; plain edge; geometric reverse; 1986–date — no monarch portrait
• 10 Cents — KM# 2; nickel plated steel; 18 mm; 3 g; plain edge; geometric reverse; 1986–date — no monarch portrait
• 25 Cents — KM# 3; nickel plated steel; 20 mm; 3.5 g; plain edge; triangular geometric reverse; 1986–date — no monarch portrait
• 1 Florin — KM# 56; nickel plated steel; 26 mm; 8.5 g; inscribed edge (GOD * ZIJ * MET * ONS *); portrait of King Willem-Alexander; 2014–date — Willem-Alexander era only; no Beatrix issues
• 5 Florin — KM# 58; aluminium bronze (gold-toned); 23.45 mm; 8.4 g; reeded edge with inscribed center channel (GOD ZIJ MET ONS); portrait of King Willem-Alexander; 2014–2024 — Willem-Alexander era only; no Beatrix issues

Condition & Notes

• Grade: XF to UNC — crisp and presentable; exact grade and year vary by denomination
• Mint marks: random — may include any Utrecht mint master mark from the sailboat era onward for the florin coins, and any mark from 1986 onward for the cent coins
• Obverse (all coins): Coat of Arms of Aruba with state name ARUBA, year, and mint marks
• Reverse (cent coins): abstract geometric designs by engraver Evelino Fingal — no royal portrait
• Reverse (florin coins): portrait of King Willem-Alexander, KONING DER NEDERLANDEN
• Issuing entity: Centrale Bank van Aruba
• Mint: Royal Dutch Mint, Utrecht, Netherlands
• Currency: Aruban florin (1986–date)

A Currency Born on Independence Day

On 1 January 1986, Aruba achieved Status Aparte — a separate status within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, distinct from the Netherlands Antilles it had been part of since 1954. With that political separation came a new currency: the Aruban florin, replacing the Netherlands Antillean guilder at par. The 5, 10, and 25 cent coins were among the first struck, designed by Evelino Fingal, an Aruban artist whose bold geometric reverses gave the new nation's coinage a distinctly modern, Caribbean identity. The florin coins followed in 2014 with the accession of King Willem-Alexander. Every coin in this set is a chapter in that story.

Two Metals, Two Eras, One King

The three cent coins — 5, 10, and 25 — bear no royal portrait. They were introduced in 1986 under Queen Beatrix and have continued unchanged under Willem-Alexander; the design simply never included a monarch's face. The 1 Florin and 5 Florin are a different matter entirely: both were introduced in 2014, after Willem-Alexander's accession, and carry only his portrait — there are no Beatrix versions of either coin. This set therefore gives you the full Aruban denomination range, with the king appearing exactly where the series placed him: on the two highest-denomination coins, in nickel-silver and gold-toned bronze respectively.

The Coat of Arms: On Every Coin

The Coat of Arms of Aruba appears on the obverse of every denomination in this set — the one constant across 40 years, two monarchs, and nine mint masters. It features a four-pointed star representing the four languages of the island (Papiamento, Dutch, English, and Spanish), an eagle symbolizing freedom, and traditional Aruban imagery. Adopted in 1986 alongside Status Aparte, it has never been redesigned. Collecting the full denomination set is the most complete way to study it across sizes and compositions.

Reading the Mint Marks Across the Set

One of the pleasures of this set is that different coins may carry different mint master privy marks — small symbols struck alongside the Utrecht caduceus that identify which mint master oversaw production that year. The cent coins date back to 1986 and can carry any of nine marks, from the anvil of Jan de Jong to the current bird of Bert van Ravenswaaij. The florin coins, introduced in 2014, carry only the marks of the Willem-Alexander era. The set you receive is a small cross-section of Dutch minting history, embedded in Caribbean coinage.

About Aruba

• Origin of name: Disputed — possibly from the Arawak words ora ubao ("well-situated") or oruba ("accompanied by wind"); the Spanish also used isla de oro (island of gold), though no significant gold was found
• Capital: Oranjestad — pop. ~35,000 (2023)
  • Origin of name: Dutch for "Orange City," named after the House of Orange-Nassau, the Dutch royal family
• Population: ~107,000 (UN 2023) — roughly the size of Peoria, Illinois
• Area: 180 km² (69 mi²) — roughly the size of Washington, D.C.
• GDP per capita (PPP): ~$37,000 (IMF est.) — one of the highest in the Caribbean
• Main exports: Tourism services (~90% of GDP); refined petroleum products (historically); aloe vera
• Borders: None — island nation; nearest neighbors are Venezuela (~29 km south) and Curaçao (~68 km east)
• Official/spoken languages: Papiamento (native creole, primary spoken language); Dutch (official, government and education); English and Spanish widely spoken
• Ethnicities: Mixed Aruban (predominantly Arawak, African, and European descent, ~75%); Dutch and other European (~15%); Latin American (~10%)
• Memberships: Kingdom of the Netherlands (constituent country, 1986–date); CARICOM (observer); ACS (associate member)
• Sovereignty: Status Aparte within the Kingdom of the Netherlands since 1 January 1986; not independent — Dutch citizens, Dutch passport, Dutch monarch as head of state

Own all five denominations and hold the complete monetary identity of one of the Caribbean's most successful small economies — silver cents and a gold florin, geometric abstractions and a royal portrait, plain edges and inscribed ones. A set that fits in your palm and tells forty years of Aruban history.