John Updyke The Updike Calling Mallard

John Updike (1886-1955) Green Bank, NJ, 1922 18 in. long

John Updike was not only a decoy carver, but also one of the earliest collectors, alongside his friends Joel Barber and William Mackey. This decoy was made as a special presentation piece for a close friend and neighbor of Updike's. The bird was never rigged and has a stamped "640" from the Noyes Collection on the underside. It also has a penciled “Jack Updike, Greenbank, 1922” on the bottom.

This mallard carving represents this early and important New Jersey maker's very finest work and is among the most dynamic decoy forms from the entire region. The rarity of early mallards along the Atlantic flyway cannot be overstated as the species was not prevalent along the coast during this era.

This exact bird is illustrated in two important volumes, leading the New Jersey chapter of "The Great Book" and it was also chosen by Jim Doherty for his "Classic New Jersey Decoys." A black duck with related form was in the Collection of John and Isabelle Hillman.

A top collector from New Jersey, Gary Giberson understood rarity, putting together the greatest ruddy turnstone collection ever assembled, and one of the finest collections of Jersey mallards. Given his knowledge, Giberson was selected by "Decoy Magazine" to tackle the New Jersey chapter of the monumental decoy publication "The Great Book of Wildfowl Decoys." The Updike Calling Mallard represents the crown jewel of the Giberson Collection. Excellent original paint with light wear, including minor flaking to area of each side and possible minute touch-up to original hairline crack in neck.

Provenance: Fred Noyes Collection The Gary and Niki Giberson Collection

Literature: James R. Doherty, "Classic New Jersey Decoys," Louisville, KY, 2011, p. 153, exact decoy illustrated. Joe Engers, ed., “The Great Book of Wildfowl Decoys,” San Diego, CA, 1990, p. 110, exact decoy illustrated leading the New Jersey chapter. Henry A. Fleckenstein Jr., "New Jersey Decoys," Exton, PA, 1983, p. 56, Hillman black duck illustrated.

Provenance

Fred Noyes Collection The Gary and Niki Giberson Collection