Clifford Van Zandt Hooded Merganser Pair

Clifford Van Zandt Townsend's Inlet, NJ, c. 1930 This perfectly matched pair of hollow hooded mergansers is featured in Quintina Colio's American Bird Decoys and the drake is featured in William J. Mackey's book of the same title. A folky pair made out of cedar. Early gunning decoys of this species are difficult to come by. The pair is in very good original paint. Drake has minor gunning wear with rubs to breast. The hen has a hairline crack in the neck that has been reset and a few shot scars to the head with a few areas of paint worn to bare wood.

Provenance: William J. Mackey, Jr. Collection The University Club of Milwaukee Decoy Collection

Literature: William J. Mackey, Jr., American Bird Decoys, New York, NY, 1965, plate 117, p. 139, drake is exact decoy illustrated. Robert Shaw, Call to the Sky: The Decoy Collection of James M. McCleery, M.D., Houston, TX, 1992, p. 60. Quintina Colio, American Bird Decoys, Ephrata, PA, 1972, p. 18, exact decoys illustrated.

Provenance

William J. Mackey, Jr. Collection The University Club of Milwaukee Decoy Collection