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Welcome to Decoy-Dux, specializing in quality representative antique, vintage and contemporary duck, goose and shorebird decoys and carvings, as well as miniatures, books, paintings and other related collectibles.
D0007: Fine Hollow Ontario Canada Goose, 3Q, 20C
Fine hollow-bodied, glass-eyed Canada goose decoy by Danny Wigle, Amhurstburg, Ontario, circa 3rd quarter, 20th century. Bearing strong Ben Schmidt influence, this exceptional decoy is in detailed original feather paint with a nice patina, showing very minor in-use wear. it has raised and crossed wingtips with carved primaries and a fluted tail. Each scalloped feather on the body is carved in outline as well. As seen in the photos, the joint where the neck joins the body has some slight separation but is firmly joined. The well-carved head and neck have a rasped finish. The bill is well detailed with carved mandibles, nail and nostrils. The decoy measures 24 inches in length, 9 inches in width and stands almost 11 inches tall at the head.
Price: $1950.00
D0994: Rare Hudson Canada Goose, Pascagoula, Circa late 1920s
Rare special order Vac-Sta Deluxe Model feather-cut Canada goose decoy by the Hudson Decoy Company, Pascagoula, Mississippi, circa 1927. The Hudson Decoy Company was formed by Frank L. Hudson and partners in 1925 when they purchased the assets of the Grubbs Manufacturing Company. Hudson patented the Mono-Sta, Duo-Sta and Vac-Sta designs in 1929. Hudson continued to manufacture decoys until 1940 when a major fire caused the company to cease operations. In 1941, Roy Cumbest purchased the patents, what remained of their equipment and the right to continue making the Hudson-style decoys. This decoy, constructed with the Vac-Sta design, is in an aesthetically pleasing working scalloped feather repaint coated with a thin coat of shellac. There are two tacks in the dividing wall of the body cavities where a card was once attached by the factory identifying the decoy as being made by Hudson. The glass-eyed decoy measures 21" in length and stands 9.5" high at the head.
Price: $450.00
D0988: Early New Jersey Brant Decoy, Joe Paul, Manahawkin, NJ
Hollow-carved brant decoy in swimming position by Joe Paul (1881-1951), Manahawkin, New Jersey, circa 1Q, 20C. In addition to life as a bayman, Paul worked as a handyman, a carpenter and as a "mosser", a commercial collector of sphagnum peat moss from the bogs of the nearby pine barrens. The decoy is in very good to excellent original condition with light in-use wear and some separation at the body seam. Unusual for New Jersey decoys, Paul’s brant were carved with flat bottoms. Measuring 17-1/2 inchesin length, 5-1/2inches in width and standing almost 8 inches high at the head, the decoy has carved eye grooves but no eyes, painted or otherwise. The ballast weight and line tie have been removed.
Price: $695.00
D0929: Rare Delaware River Canada Goose Decoy, Charles Allen, Circa 1940
Rare Delaware River Canada goose decoy by Charles Allen (1893-1985), Bordentown, New Jersey, circa 1940. As the few Canada geese that migrated down the Delaware would decoy to black duck rigs, goose decoys were seldom made by carvers from this region. Those few that exist were made by Allen and a small handful of other carvers including John Blair and John McLoughlin. Allen meticulously painted his decoys in a classic style, often applying five to eight coats. A big, bold glass-eyed decoy in original paint, it is solid-bodied with sharply carved shoulder and wing outlines and crossed and raised wingtips. Measuring 25" from tip of bill to tip of tail, it is signed "Charles Allen, Bordentown, N. J.", possibly by Allen, and dated 1940 on the base of the decoy. There are several tight cracks in the neck, an age split running the length of the back and a small split in the breast. The original leather line tie and pad weight remain. See Decoy Magazine, March/April 2021, for an excellent article on the Allens work. This decoy is pictured in the article. See last photo attached.
Price: $925.00
D0895: Excellent Mason Premier Mallard Hen With Stamp
Excellent Premier grade mallard hen by the Mason Decoy Factory, Detroit, Michigan, circa 1920-1924. The little-used glass-eyed decoy is in vibrant and well-detailed original swirled feather paint with very little wear. It retains the rarely-found blue Mason Premier stamp on the bottom. The hen measures almost 17.5" in length, 6" in width and stands 7.5" tall at the head. It is unusual in that it is solid-bodied as opposed to the more normal hollow construction. There are several small paint rubs and a moderate age split longitudinally along the center line of the decoy.
Price: $2975.00
D0884: Wayne Shaddock Ontario Black Duck Decoy
Excellent solid-bodied, glass-eyed black duck with a slightly turned head by Wayne Shaddock (1942-2001), Belleville and Trenton, Ontario, circa 1960s. The decoy is in near mint original paint other than a narrow stripe of touch up (sealer or varnish?) to two thin age cracks on the left side of the decoy. It has carved primaries, a fluted tail and carved side pockets and is marked on the bottom with Wayne's early "W" brand made with a heated piece of wire. The head is especially well detailed with carved mandibles, nostrils and nail and a unique and attractive feather paint. The decoy measures 15" in length, 4-1/2' in width and stands 5-1/2' tall at the head. Shaddock began carving as a teenager, making working and decorative decoys over a combined span of 35 years. He was proud of having birds in Buckingham Palace and in the collection of King Hussain of Jordan.
Price: $595.00
D0840: Early Maine Red-Breasted Merganser Decoy
Superb red-breasted merganser decoy by an unknown Maine carver, circa 1st quarter, 20th century. A very folky long-necked carving with original steel bill and three-piece laminated body. The stylized original polychrome paint remains bold with light to moderate wear. It measures 19" in length from the tip of the bill to the tip of the tail but only 3 1/2" in width. It stands 9" high at the crest, but the body is only 2 1/2" deep. The neck and head are 3/4" thick with the base of the neck mortised into the first layer of the body. The decoy is "blind", without glass, paint or tack eyes.
Price: $1995.00
D0138: Reg Culver Broadbill Drake Decoy, 1st Q, 20th C
Outstanding broadbill drake by Reg Culver of Stratford, CT, circa mid-1st quarter, 20th century. The decoy is hollow-carved with glass eyes, original paint with a fine patina and exceptional combed paint on the back. It has a few small dings and scrapes, but is overall a fine decoy. When Ben Holmes died in 1912, Culver, who was working for Roz Bliss at the time, purchased 70 unfinished broadbill bodies from Holmes' widow. This was one of that group. Culver completed the construction of those decoys with heads of his own design. The use of the Holmes bodies led to confusion and false attribution of many Culver broadbills to Holmes, including this one. It is inscribed on the bottom, "This is a Ben Holmes decoy, 9/17/1966, Tom Marshall". Although Marshall was considered by many to be "the" expert on Connecticut decoys, this is a Culver. It is pictured and properly identified on page 94, Connecticut Decoys by Henry Chitwood. Culver's heads differ from Holmes' in that they are flat on top with low, bulging cheeks and thinner necks. Subsequent bodies made by Culver were blockier and less graceful than those started by Holmes. Many collectors consider Reg Culver's broadbills to be Stratford's finest.
Price: $2950.00
