Fine J. P. Hand (20th c, Cape May County, NJ) Duck Decoy, Merganser Drake
Up for sale is an authentic, exceptionally carved, full size Upper Chesapeake/Eastern Coastal Region (Cape May County, NJ), Hand Crafted New Jersey White Cedar, "Merganser Drake" Duck Decoy, circa 1970's-1980's by Master Carver J. "Jamie" Hand (American, 20th Century). It is nicely carved with original black, green, white and red paint. It features a finished body, painted eyes with weight and rig attachment circle on the bottom and is branded J. Hand has been carving ducks from Jersey white cedar for about 40 years.
His family has lived in Cape May County since the 1700s. His step-grandfather, Ephraim Hildreth, was also a decoy carver - today, his rare shorebird decoys go for thousands of dollars on the antiques market. Hand learned his craft from two masters - Hurley Conklin, and Harry Shourds, a third-generation decoy carver and NEA National Heritage Fellow. While duck decoys are made all over the country, there are specificities which define a South Jersey decoy.
According to the carvers a South Jersey bird will be made of white cedar, will be made in two pieces, will be hollowed out inside. To give it ballast, the carver will add lead weight to the underside. A South Jersey decoy will also have a leather line tie. This decoy measures 18" long, the body is 6 1/4" tall, and it is about 5 1/2 wide.
A very unusual styled high quality decoy and a extraordinary piece of American Folk Art, a great decoy for any premium collection and important piece of Chesapeake Region/Eastern US Coastal History. Please see my other auctions for more early pieces of Americana and folk art including two more very early decoys I have decided to sell from my personal collection acquired over the last 35 years in the antiques business. Hand (20th c, Cape May County, NJ) Duck Decoy, Merganser Drake" is in sale since Friday, June 23, 2017. This item is in the category "Antiques\Primitives". The seller is "wolfmarksales" and is located in Lutherville-Timonium, Maryland.
This item can be shipped to United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Denmark, Romania, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Czech republic, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Estonia, Australia, Greece, Portugal, Cyprus, Slovenia, Japan, Sweden, South Korea, Indonesia, Taiwan, South africa, Belgium, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Norway, Saudi arabia, Ukraine, United arab emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Croatia, Malaysia, Chile, Colombia, Costa rica, Panama, Trinidad and tobago, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica.- Color: Multi-Color
- Maker: J. Hand
- Original/Reproduction: Original
- Listed By: Dealer or Reseller
- Signed?: Signed
- Type: Decoys
- Material: Wood
- Style: Americana
- Size Type/Largest Dimension: Medium (Up to 30in.)
- Region of Origin: US-Northeast
- Date of Creation: 1970-1989