Featured Canada Goose Brings $810,000

@cxgirl
How big is it? It looks huuuuge.
(At first I thought it was sitting on bricks, now I see the top of a box)
Did you see @kardinalisimo 's post on "Wood Decoy" a few days ago?
Try Googling Root Head; Coot Decoy North Carolina

 

@scoutshouse it is 19"L x 15"H x 10"W.
I didn't see that thread, off to find it

 

This foo foo decor item never went into the marsh and never was intended to. It bears little resemblance to real decoys.

 

@terry5732

I get your point, but still wondering if genuine decoys of waterfowl this large were actually made and deployed?

 

below is from the description of the goose - wouldn't this mean it was meant to be used?
'The underside of the tail was carved carefully, and the bottom was fitted for an inset weight. The head could be removed for transport to and from the field.'

 

if it was weighted...it would have been made to use !

 

yup....made life size ....weighted to bob in the water and not fall over....
and the best ones were life like.....

 

Terry, I think you have this wrong from what i have read.

“The reason valuable decoys are so valuable is because 90 percent of them were repainted or had their heads broken off, so the ones that are left in good condition are the best ones and go for high prices.” According to Guyette, most of the decoys he sees in appraisals are worth about $100."
"From the mid-19th century through the early-20th century, the use of painted, wooden, hollow or solid shorebird, goose, and duck decoys came into fashion among bird hunters. While no longer used today due to advances in decoy materials and technology, these wooden duck decoys are now considered highly collectible, with entire auction houses dedicated to the buying and selling of vintage duck decoys, magnificent works of folk art"
"He notes that today, while some folk art collectors buy duck decoys, most collectors tend to be sport hunters who attend auctions and events for both their united collecting passion and the camaraderie that goes along with it. “Year after year, people come to the auctions to see friends. [The auctions] turn into enjoyable events in addition to a business,” says Guyette. “That’s one of the things that drives the market – decoys tend to be independent of other antiques."

Here is the article in full that i quoted from above, pretty good info on the market today and how it got started in the mid 20th century
https://www.invaluable.com/blog/inside-the-archives-duck-decoy-prices/

Yeah, good point.

 

Yeah, Canada Geese are BIG birds, we have them here in Charlotte NC. I don't know if they are permanent residents or just stop here on their migratory route & decide to rest awhile. In addition to being protected by Federal law, if you mess around with a mother goose who has babies/goslings, be prepared to get WACKED! There are businesses here that deal with the geese removal services.
UPDATE: Some of them live here all year long, I didn't know that til just now.
"North Carolina contains both migratory and resident (non-migratory) populations of Canada geese"
https://www.ncwildlife.org/Portals/0/Learning/documents/Profiles/CanadaGoose.pdf

 

Hi James,
That started in NJ. Back in the the 1950s some hunters near Round Valley clipped a few geese so they could not fly north. Their young stayed and did not migrate and thus started the horrible mess we have now. The geese are everywhere. The biggest problem is their poop. They are conditioned to poop as they fly away as not to weight them down. When they were migrating it was not a problem it is now a huge problem. It is contaminating the water everywhere. You can not kill them or even mess with them since they are a Federal migratory bird.
greg

 

& Canada Golfers, as well !!

 

& thus the term.....Your Goose is Cooked !! WaHahaha!!!!!!!!!

 

LOL, oh lord! Yes, canada geese can be a nuisance, no doubt! Hence if you google "geese removal" in charlotte, you get pages & pages of businesses that do it.
When i first moved here i lived in an apartment complex that had a 10-15 acre pond and my roommate didn't smoke so i would smoke on the second story balcony. I started feeding a few geese crackers that wandered up from the pond, BIG MISTAKE! Every time i went out there whole flocks would descend in that area honking, stamping their feet, Translation:
Hey Dummy, Yes YOU up there smoking, we want our crackers & we want them RIGHT NOW!!!

 

It's been so warm here ....that I think the southward migration will start late this year.......
which means the golf courses ...which pack up with geese ....will be further crowded .....requiring a more involved cleaning of my shoes and clubs....

 

Man, we paid only $22.00 for ours. Not saying its in the same league of course.

 

buy what ya like !