Uri Batzen

The Uri Batzen's design remained strikingly consistent for nearly two centuries, featuring the Uri coat of arms with a bull that rarely varied, even as European coinage evolved around it.

This copper issue from the Swiss canton of Uri served as small change in alpine communities, typically weighing around 2 to 3 grams and valued at a fraction of a silver thaler. Minters in Altdorf produced them sporadically between 1600 and 1798, though exact dates for many strikes are murky due to incomplete records. We know they were struck using basic dies, often on irregular flans that show hammer marks from the press.

Counterfeits were common, which might explain why genuine ones turn up with clipped edges or test cuts. As for rarity, it's hit or miss; some years are plentiful in collections, others vanished without a trace.

Some numismatists liken the Batzen's persistence to a stubborn mountain goat.