There’s a Copeland Low D whistle in Silver on Ebay.
It’s in one more piece than mine. I must admit, I prefer the two-piece design, but then I only like the tone holes to be in line, so there’s no need for me to move the bottom one.
Seems to be a little tarnished to me. And how does one tell if it’s silver or nickel? I mean, you can tell once it’s in your hands (I think).
you ask of the person holding it
I was wondering that as well. I just sent the question to the seller. I’ll post the response when I get it.
Normally, on eBay I wouldn’t necessarily assume that “silver” refers to anything but the color, not the material. But as the seller in this case seems to be the OP Mike Mullins, I’d guess that silver here does mean Ag.
However … When I bought my used Copeland D, it was sold to me as a silver whistle by the seller, a experienced musician who was the 4th or 5th owner. But when I got it, I could tell right away that it was nickel-silver, not Sterling. The different luster is quite distinctive if you know what to look for. Verifying the serial number with Mike Copeland confirmed nickel-silver.
It turned out that the mistake had been made by one of the earlier owners in the chain, and the whistle had been sold on as silver by every subsequent owner. My purchase triggered a chain of retroactive refunds up the chain until it was all sorted out.
Mike, the wording of your OP above is odd. If you are indeed the seller, why not identify yourself as such? The wording makes it seem that this eBay listing is just something that you stumbled upon.
The same question holds for the Daye chanter on eBay in the Uilleann forum.
Sorry - I am the seller - in this case for someone else. In any event, the whistle is in my possession.
Thanks for the clarification. 
So is it silver?
I also believe this whistle is sterling. Only a dozen were ever made, and this one is 6 serial numbers from mine. Doesn’t prove anything, but it seems likely. BTW, it always seemed to me that the best reason for a sterling whistle is because of the anti-bacterial/microbial properties of silver, which (I think) is why it is favored for tableware.
Is that so, only a dozen? Interesting.
Yep, that’s what he tells me.
I didn’t realize the OP was the seller either. The question I posed through ebay was:
“You’ve described the whistle as “silver.” Copelands were made in both silver and nickel. The two are hard to distinguish from each other so I’m wondering how you determined the whistle is silver and not nickel.”
Mike replied:
“The only definitive test I’ve found for silver is to use nitric acid in a small inconspicuous area. The whistle is not my property but belongs to the sister of its deceased former owner so I can’t pursue that course.
I know Michael made whistles in both nickel and in silver as you state and I’ve written him asking his opinion. There is a serial number and, hopefully, he has some records which will allow him to confirm one way or another.
On a purely subjective basis I can only tell you that it “looks” like sterling silver to me as opposed to nickel. When I polish it with silver polish it acts just like other silver.
If you know of a way to distinguish, please let me know.”
If it turns out to be nickel, it sounds like a real headache in the making since it’s being advertised as “silver” which would garner a higher price.
Yes, Michael C. should have serial number records to verify.
In my (limited) experience … When polished, Sterling silver has a distinct clear “bluish” luster and a sort of depth of reflection, whereas nickel alloy has a more “whitish” tinge and flatter reflection. I suppose it can vary by alloy. But Copeland nickel definitely does not look like Sterling when held and compared side-by-side with a genuine Sterling reference object. Shouldn’t be too hard to sort out.
If so then it looks good value for money at present ($510) - by my estimates the silver in it is worth over $400 scrap.
I heard from Michael Copeland this morning - the whistle is indeed sterling silver per his records.
I wouldn’t be surprised if that price more than doubles by the end of the auction. This is considered by most to be as rare a whistle as ever you’ll find, and there’s been yet another round of sad rumors circulating recently that Michael has mentioned he won’t be making whistles much longer at all. There are probably a couple of folks out there exploring the possibility of harvesting one of their kidneys by now. The desire to possess a Copeland low D can do things to a man, and I’ve watched a couple of people go woefully (and regretibly) into debt to buy a Copeland low D on eBay… Some think it’s the end-all, be-all of whistles, and some see it as a rare and great investment opportunity. However, I’m not sure how many of them still felt the same way six months to a year after actually getting their whistles… Being that this one is silver, it definitely has some “happy ending” potential for the serious bidder. I just hope it goes to someone who will play it. If I thought I would actually play it enough, I’d throw $800 at it and see what happened, but I know I wouldn’t play it that much… I just wouldn’t.
That wouldn’t pay 10 days rent in my neighborhood. If I was STONE COLD BROKE I’d move out two weeks early and have a whistle to busk with for the rest of my life.
Who cares? 
Besides, your busking wouldn’t last 20 minutes in that neighborhood before you’d be putting your whistle up for bail.
I wouldn’t know anything about that, but I haven’t been busking in decades. Rents are ridiculously high here because of all the federal government workers and military folks. Busking used to be illegal in DC, at least around the monuments, but I have seen a lot of people doing it the last few years and they don’t seem to be getting run off, so maybe the laws have been relaxed. I’m pretty sure a low whistle isn’t loud enough for a good busking instrument, though. A really bad sax player would do much better.
And it did. So was it anyone from here who claimed her as his/her own?