Will Smith Prince Edward County Very Hollow Drake Bluebill Decoy Stapleton Paint
Will Smith Drake Bluebill Duck Decoy, Very Hollow & V Brand Under Bill. A great bird from the famous "County" region of Ontario, this Will Smith bluebill drake decoy is a great find. Very hollow and exceptionally well-carved, this bird has all of Smith's best attributes in one. Check out the finely detailed head and bill, smooth head to body connection, perfectly formed body, and classic, yet subtle, apex at the tail. This bird is very hollow showing Smith's expert hand at making decoys, as the sign of a great decoy has always been tied to how lightweight it is.
Smith wasn't a great painter, so this bird sports original Harper Stapleton paint. It also has a "V" branded under the bill in addition to the painted initials CHV. Simply put, this is a great bird for any collection. Original Haper Stapleton paint and great structural condition for a working decoy. I have done my best to document this decoy through both the text above and the photographs. I will do my best to accommodate any and all requests. The decoy you are seeing is the exact one you will be getting, therefore, there should be no surprises if you have taken the time to scroll through all the photos and read the text. Unless the decoy is listed in 100% original paint, expect some old hunter touch-up. Almost every single decoy I have for sale was in fact a working decoy part of a larger rig and subject to typical gunning wear including rubs that were typically touched-up between hunting seasons as a way to pass the time during the off-season. Some of these decoys are more than 100 years old and over the course of many hunting seasons it is bound to happen. He was one of the most prolific market hunters in Eastern Ontario making decoys mainly for his own personal use. His decoys show a great balance of function and beauty with few being painted by Smith himself and most being painted by his friend and house painted Harper Stapleton. Smith worked varied job once market hunting was outlawed in 1918, including trapping, being a hunting guide, and even building silo for local farmers. While Smith was known to be a great hunter, he wasn't exceptionally thought of as a great person with may stories about him floating around painting him as a rather undesirable individual. Aside from Smith's personal issues, his decoy are some of the finest to come out of the County, rivaling those made by Hart, Chrysler, et al. His decoy were all made extremely hollow and had exceptionally realistic form that somehow captured the soft appearance of a live duck in a wooden format.Tons of info about Smith and his decoys ca be found in the best book on decoys from Prince Edward County, Ontario appropriately titled "The County Decoys" by Jim Stewart. I say most because as you see some decoys will have a modest/fair-market reserve. Call it down-sizing if you will.
If a decoy doesn't meet reserve, let's talk. NOTE: As with most sporting collectibles, along with being a great addition to a game room or home decor, vintage decoys have shown to be a sound investment that seldom decrease in value. Each decoy is truly a One-Of-A-Kind item as no two hand-carved decoys are exactly alike and with so few available decoys from each carver, as time passes, they will surely only increase in value. Be sure to add my to your favorite sellers/searches. I have many more decoys to add from all regions including the Chesapeake Bay, Ontario, Quebec, Michigan, New York, Illinois, the St.The item "Will Smith Prince Edward County Very Hollow Drake Bluebill Decoy Stapleton Paint" is in sale since Sunday, January 14, 2018. This item is in the category "Sporting Goods\Hunting\Vintage Hunting\Duck Decoys". The seller is "dckhuntr" and is located in Butler, Pennsylvania.
This item can be shipped to United States, Canada.