Gus Wilson Eider Hen

Augustus Aaron Wilson (1864-1950) South Portland, ME, c. 1900 "Wilson looked at waterfowl much the way the Ward brothers did. There was a similarity in their ability to capture an unusual pose and to produce a decoy that continues to enthrall even the seasoned gunners who have spent their lives observing waterfowl.” -Maine decoy author and historian, Captain John Dinan

This boldly carved sea duck is one of the finest Wilson eider hen decoys to ever be offered at public auction. The carving features an exceptionally rendered breast, a preening head with carved eyes, bill detail, and raised wings.

This large bird is over seventeen and one-half inches long, over eight and one-half inches high, and over nine inches wide. The two-piece construction features a prodigious six-and-one-half by four-inch inletted head seat. The bottom displays an anchor line ring fastened with an old fence staple.

Wilson was born on Mount Desert Island, Maine. Though he is foremost remembered as a carver, he was also a boat builder, waterman, outdoorsman, and lighthouse keeper. He was an attendant to a number of Maine’s lighthouses, including the Great Duck Island Light, Goose Rocks Station on Fox Island, Two Lights Station on Cape Elizabeth, Marshalls Point Light at Port Clyde, and lastly Spring Point Light in Casco Bay.

According to art historian Gene Kangas, “His job as a lighthouse keeper provided financial security and ample time to facilitate rapid artistic advancement. Imaginative decoys and wildlife carving began to taking shape in an incredible variety of poses.”

Early regional traditions and requirements drove carvers to produce big solid decoys with modest paint patterns. “Seaworthiness, durability, practicality, effectiveness and affordability were essential considerations...Wilson’s genius is demonstrated by his ability to work within those existing traditions, yet elevate the Maine decoy to a higher level of artistic achievement.”

Wilson’s interests were by no means limited to decoys. He carved a variety of songbirds, decoratives, weathervanes, and big cats. A pair of Wilson’s tigers are featured in the American Identities exhibit, on display as a part of the permanent collection of the Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, New York. In original paint with even gunning wear.

Literature: Gene Kangas, “Gus Wilson, Folk Artist,” Decoy Magazine, Lewes, DE, November/December 1994, pp. 8-13. Robert Shaw, "Bird Decoys of North America," New York, NY, 2010, p. 149, similar decoy illustrated.