One of a pair of woodducks
by the Peterson Decoy Factory which fetched $66,000.
EASTON, MD. - On November 7 and 8, Guyette and Schmidt, Inc.,
conducted its annual fall decoy auction in Easton at the Talbot
County Community Center. The event immediately preceded the
Easton Waterfowl Festival. The two-day gross came in at
$1,225,000, with 13 items bringing over $10,000.
According to the gallery, while some segments of the market are
off because of economic and political reasons, prices at the sale
were over estimate. A crowd of some 350 people took an hour to
get warmed up before it became as aggressive as bidders were at
the firm's April and July decoy sales.
Canada goose by Sam Soper, $46,750.
The top lot was a rare pair of woodducks, circa 1880s, by the
Peterson Decoy Factory of Detroit, Mich., which fetched $66,000.
A Canada goose by Sam Soper of New Jersey brought $46,750.
The hottest items turned out to be in miniature. A group of 19
miniature shorebirds by Elmer Crowell sold for a record $77,000,
and a very rare group of 22 miniatures by A.J. King sold for an
unheard of $107,700.
A Canada goose by Clark Madera reached $20,900; a pintail drake,
by Tom Chambers, realized $27,500; and a Mason Factory special
order Willet, found at an antiques auction in Massachusetts for a
few hundred dollars, brought $11,500.
A decorative creation by Crowell, a Kingfisher, sold for $26,950,
and two fish decoys by Oscar Peterson reached $3,125 and $2,425.
The firm's next auction will be conducted in conjunction with the
National Antique Decoy Show, St. Charles, Ill., in April.
