"1652" Shilling Good Samaritan/Oak Tree Wyatt Fantasy

Coin Details

Auction Record

$6,600 MS62 11-10-2018 Heritage Auctions

Description

A fantasy shilling combining Good Samaritan and Oak Tree design elements, created by James W. Wyatt of London. Explicitly categorized as a fantasy rather than a copy, this piece makes no pretense of reproducing a genuine colonial coin but instead creates an entirely new numismatic item from historical design elements. The Good Samaritan type occupies a controversial space in colonial numismatics. While some 19th-century references included it among Massachusetts colonial coins, the type is now generally regarded as either a later creation or a misattribution. Wyatt's fantasy shilling embraces this ambiguity by freely combining Good Samaritan imagery with Massachusetts Oak Tree design elements in a configuration that was never produced by the Hull Mint or any other colonial authority. The fantasy designation distinguishes this piece from Wyatt's more straightforward copies, which aimed to reproduce known colonial types with reasonable fidelity. Fantasy pieces like this one were created for the entertainment and delight of collectors who appreciated novel combinations of numismatic imagery, regardless of historical accuracy. Wyatt fantasy shillings combining Good Samaritan and Oak Tree motifs are rare today. They represent the more imaginative side of 19th-century numismatic production and are valued by collectors who appreciate the creative liberty that copyists of the era exercised alongside their more faithful reproductions.

Rarity Notes

Rare. Fantasy combinations are produced in very limited quantities and appeal to specialists in numismatic curiosities.

Cross References

Wyatt Fantasy series; Good Samaritan shilling tradition; Related: Oak Tree coinage, Massachusetts Silver Coinage