Sommer Is Shilling W-15535 Brass Mule Kenney-11 Dickeson Copy

Coin Details

Description

A brass mule of the Sommer Islands Shilling series cataloged as W-15535 and Kenney-11 in the Dickeson copy program. This is the second brass mule variety in the Kenney classification (after Kenney-6/W-15515), continuing the pattern of multiple die combinations across each metal. The Kenney-11 brass mule uses a different die pairing than the earlier Kenney-6 brass mule, creating a distinct variety despite sharing the same composition. The warm golden color of brass makes these pieces visually appealing, and the alloy's durability ensures reasonable survival rates compared to softer metals like white metal or tin. Brass was well-suited to Dickeson's purposes: affordable, attractive, and capable of taking clear impressions from his Sommer Islands dies. The existence of two distinct brass mule varieties (Kenney-6 and Kenney-11) indicates that Dickeson deliberately created variety within each metal, responding to collector demand for unique die combinations across different compositions. The W-15535/Kenney-11 brass mule is sought by advanced Sommer Islands copy collectors building complete Kenney variety sets. The systematic cataloging under both the Whitman and Kenney systems reflects the organized approach that modern numismatics brings to documenting even the most specialized areas of colonial reproduction coinage.

Rarity Notes

Rare. The second brass mule variety in the Kenney series; distinct from Kenney-6 in die characteristics.

Cross References

W-15535; Kenney-11; Dickeson Copy Mule series; Original: Sommer Islands Shilling, circa 1616