Sommer Is Shilling Brass Dickeson Copy

Coin Details

Auction Record

$1,320 MS65 04-03-2024 Stack's Bowers

Description

A brass copy of the exceedingly rare Sommer Islands (Bermuda) Shilling, produced by Dr. Montroville Wilson Dickeson (1810-1882) of Philadelphia during the 1850s-1860s. The original Sommer Islands coinage, struck circa 1616 for the Virginia Company's Bermuda settlement, ranks among the earliest English colonial coins in the Western Hemisphere and is virtually unobtainable in any condition. Dickeson was a physician, archaeologist, and prolific numismatist who created copies of famous colonial rarities at a time when the originals were already museum-level pieces. His copies faithfully reproduce the original designs: a wild hog (the islands were named for their abundance of wild boar, hence "Hogge Money") on the obverse with SOMMER ISLANDS legend, and a full-rigged sailing ship on the reverse with the denomination "XII" for twelve pence (one shilling). The brass composition gives this piece a golden appearance quite different from the copper originals. These Dickeson copies were made openly as reproductions for collectors who had no hope of acquiring originals, and they have become collectible in their own right as artifacts of 19th-century numismatic culture. The quality of Dickeson's work varies but generally shows competent die-cutting that captures the essential features of the originals while differing in subtle details of style and relief. Brass Dickeson copies of the Sommer Islands Shilling are among the more common compositions in which these reproductions appear, though all Dickeson copies are considered scarce today given their age and the relatively small numbers produced.

Rarity Notes

Scarce. Dickeson copies are collected in their own right as 19th-century numismatic reproductions. Brass examples are among the more frequently encountered compositions.

Cross References

Dickeson Copy series; Original: Sommer Islands Shilling, circa 1616