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TAXIDERMY AND DECOYS

by Bruce Lowe

A Photographic Celebration from Hunting & Fishing Collectibles Magazine

There are those who Left: A Landry
believe that every harvested Demster Green
duck should become part Wing Teal
of someone’s meal. I Drake. This
feel that it’s accept- Louisiana
able to occasionally carver perfectly
save an especially beautiful captured the
specimen for taxidermy. beauty of this
Positioning a decoy beside a dabbling duck.
skillfully mounted duck can add to the enjoyment of your
collection. The justaposition of a great carving and an expertly
executed waterfowl mount can create an impressive display.

A Mike Frady Pintail drake and
matching taxidermy specimen.
This bird was a working decoy
out of Frady’s hunting rig.

Above: Hanging Ducks
by C.B. Stewart, an
impressionist approach
to the many famed
paintings done in the
A Ken Anger Blue Wing trump l’oeil style popular
Teal drake. Canadian carver in the 19th century.
Anger was known as the
“rasp master” Left: A Blue Wing
Teal drake mounted in
a hanging “After the
Decoy enthusiasts are always Hunt” fashion.
looking for new and different ways of
displaing their collections. In this lit-
tle article the author suggests that the
blending of decoys with real duck
mounts can enhance the interest level
of any collection. Veteran decoy col-
lectors always break into a broad
smile when they hear a non-collector
say, “Oh, they look so lifelike!” Well,
if you happen to like Bruce Lowe’s
idea suggested here, the next time an
uninitiated admirer of your collec-
tions how “real” your ducks look,
you can smile back at them and say,
“Well, yes, they do, don’t they!”
– Hunting and Fishing Collectibles
Magazine Publisher, Stanley L. Van Etten A Gil Lowe Canvasback. Born in 1907,
Two mounted Wod Duck drakes this carver is featured in Fleckenstein’s
joined by a Hurley Conklin decoy Decoys of the Mid-Atlantic Region.

32 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles