Shang Wheeler Outstanding Sleeping Black Duck

Charles "Shang" Wheeler (1872-1949) Stratford, CT, c. 1940 15 in. long

"Shang" Wheeler presented this refined decoy to George F. B. Johnson of Buffalo, New York, following a hunt at Johnson’s Mid-March Gunning Club at Turkey Point, Ontario, Canada. This sophisticated sleeping model is Wheeler's signature design from the master carver's dynamic portfolio.

This balsa example shows his best carving detail and finest scratch paint on the head. Always innovative, in deference to the intelligence of the black duck, Wheeler feather-painted the bottom, in case the bird was to flip over while hunting. Excellent original paint with even gunning wear, a few dings with minor darkening.

Provenance: George F. B. Johnson Collection, Buffalo, New York, gifted from the maker Private Collection

Literature: Dixon MacD. Merkt, "Shang: A Biography of Charles E. Wheeler," Spanish Fork, UT, 1984, p. 70 and front and back dust-jacket cover, related mallard illustrated multiple times, p. 71, related black duck illustrated. Guyette and Schmidt, "Decoys At Auction," July 2008, front cover, and lot 78, exact decoy illustrated.

Provenance

George F. B. Johnson Collection, Buffalo, New York, gifted from the maker Private Collection