(1616) Sommer Islands Shilling - Large Sails

Coin Details

Auction Record

$109,250 • F12 NGC • 04-2014 • Heritage Auctions

Description

Among the greatest rarities in all of American colonial numismatics, the Large Sails variety of the Sommer Islands shilling is distinguished by a foresail that extends close to the beaded border on the reverse, differentiating it from the Small Sails variety where the sail falls shorter. Cataloged as Breen 1, W-11470, and BMA Type Two, this piece is classified as R.7 (fewer than 13 known), with only six to seven examples documented and approximately three surviving in what might be considered collectible condition. The Sommer Islands — the original English name for Bermuda, derived from Sir George Somers who was shipwrecked there in 1609 — produced this coinage circa 1616, making it the earliest English colonial coinage struck for use in the Western Hemisphere. The obverse features a full-rigged sailing ship, while the famous reverse displays a wild hog (the island's abundant feral pigs provided a critical food source for early settlers), giving the entire series its popular nickname of "Hogge Money." The Large Sails variety's obverse die is identical to the Small Sails variety, confirming that the two shilling types share an obverse but differ in their reverse dies. Struck in copper or brass and likely produced in England before being shipped to the colony, Sommer Islands coins circulated in a tiny island economy where they served alongside Spanish silver and barter goods. Each auction appearance of a Large Sails shilling constitutes a major numismatic event, with institutional buyers, museum funds, and elite private collectors competing for one of fewer than a half-dozen obtainable specimens.

Rarity Notes

Extremely rare. R.7 (fewer than 13 known). Only 6-7 examples exist, approximately 3 in collectible condition.

Cross References

Breen 1, W-11470, BMA Type Two