Shang Wheeler Early Preening Black Duck

Charles E. "Shang" Wheeler (1872-1949) Stratford, CT, c. 1910 15 in. long

A classic Connecticut black duck decoy with exceptional carving and fine paint by the region's most revered maker. The underside bears the white-paint inscription "Black Duck Preening / From the personal rig of Chas E. (Shang) Wheeler, Stratford Conn." and a flat teardrop-shaped weight. A rigmate was in the collection of early collector Joel Barber, was pictured in Chitwood's "Connecticut Decoys," and now resides at the Shelburne Museum. In a second coat of Wheeler gunning paint with light even wear.

Provenance: Shang Wheeler Rig Walter L. Bush Collection Collection of a New York City Museum, acquired from the above in 1953

Literature: Dixon MacD. Merkt, "Shang: A Biography of Charles E. Wheeler," Spanish Fork, UT, 1984, dust-jacket cover, p. 139, related early preening black duck illustrated. Henry C. Chitwood, "Connecticut Decoys," West Chester, PA, 1987, p. 49, Shelburne Museum rigmate illustrated.

Provenance

Shang Wheeler Rig Walter L. Bush Collection Collection of a New York City Museum, acquired from the above in 1953