Guyette & Deeter Summer Decoy Auction Hits $4 Million
Spirited bidding pushes Guyette & Deeter’s Summer auction to the $4,000,000 mark.
This was our second auction conducted exclusively by phone, absentee and online bidding, our buyers’ enthusiasm was certainly not diminished in the least!
Collectors continue to feel comfortable bidding even if they have not viewed the items in person because of our company's guaranteed condition reports. Most auction houses sell items “as is”.
Eight decoys sold for over $100,000, and 56 sold for over $10,000. Seven of the $100,000+ decoys came from the estate of legendary decoy collector, Dr. Lloyd T. Griffith of Mt. Holly, Virginia.
The top lot of the sale was an incredibly well preserved, 140 year old, Canada goose made by Nathan Cobb, Jr. (Cobb’s Island, VA). Which sold for $336,000. The decoy was formerly owned by William Mackey, Jr. Dr. Griffith bought it for $2,600 in the early 1970’s.
Shorebird decoys accounted for the remaining top lots. A Nathan Cobb, Jr. curlew sold for $210,000. William Bowman curlew sold for $168,000, Luther Nottingham curlew for $168,000 (a world record for the maker), and an Obediah Verity feeding plover sold for $156,000.
Guyette & Deeter’s next sale will be held November 20 and 21 in Easton, Maryland. Consignments will be accepted for the sale until September 20.
Canada goose, Nathan Cobb, Jr.
Large curlew, William Bowman
Feeding black bellied plover, Obediah Verity
Brant, Nathan Cobb, Jr.
Merganser, George Boyd
Yellowlegs, William Bowman
Slot neck black bellied plover from Massachusetts
Pike trade sign, Oscar Peterson
Merganser, Franklin Pierce Wright
Pair of canvasbacks, Charles Barnard
Pair of black ducks, Lou Rathmell
Original Mason Factory crate with 12 unused bluebills
Redhead, Elmer Crowell
Merganser, Mason Decoy Factory
Old squaw, David Goodspeed
Widgeon, Elmer Crowell
Redhead, Harvey Stevens
Flying greenwing teal, Elmer Crowell
Brant, Eli Doughty
Oil on canvas, Harry Curieux Adamson. 22" x 30"
Black bellied plover from Cape Cod, MA
Two old squaw, Captain Clarence Bailey
Preening pintail hen, Mitchell LaFrance
Decorative Canada goose, Ward Brothers
Old squaw, Joseph Lincoln
Mallard, Charles Walker
Redhead hen from the Markham rig
Miniature snipe, Elmer Crowell
Pintail, Bert Graves
Bluebill, Harvey Stevens
1/2 size standing blackduck, Elmer Crowell
Curlew, Charles Clark
Curlew, McCarthy family
Mallard, Ward Brothers
Hanging game carving, Alexander Pope, Jr.
Watercolor, Ogden Pleissner. 7" x 9.5"
Preening bluebill, Albert Laing
Watercolor, Frank Benson. 7.5" x 10.5"
Original aquatint engraving, John James Audubon
Mallard, Dan English
Curlew, Nathan Cobb, Jr.
Curlew, Luther Lee Nottingham
World auction record for maker
Full set of 25 miniatures, Elmer Crowell
Merganser, Capt. Samuel Augustus Fabens
Willet, William Bowman
Eider from Deer Isle, Maine
Dowitcher, Elmer Crowell
Redhead, Elkanah Cobb
Mallard hen, Bert Graves
Mallard, Charles Walker
Black duck, Ivar Fernlund
Yellowlegs, Ira Hudson
Canvasback hen, Ward Brothers
Yellowlegs, Ira Hudson
Oil on canvas, Frank Stick. 34" x 24.5"
Oldsquaw, Steven Badlam
Oil on canvas, Arthur Fitzwilliam Tait. 11.5" 15.5"
Pair of bluebills, Ward Brothers
Large heron from New Jersey
Miniature yellowlegs, Elmer Crowell
Pair of pintails, Elmer Crowell
Pair of pintails, Ward Brothers
Preening scoter, Albert Laing
Hanging game carving, Alexander Pope, Jr.
Brant, Walter Brady
Brant, Dave "Umbrella" Watson
Black bellied plover, Obediah Verity
Canada goose, George Warin
Miniature merganser, Elmer Crowell
Golden plover, Elmer Crowell
Oversize mallard, Bert Graves
Canvasback, George Stevens
Canada goose, Joseph Lincoln
Sunfish plaque, Oscar Peterson
Original aquatint engraving, John James Audubon
Peep, Elmer Crowell
Two miniature penguins, Elmer Crowell
Early yellowlegs, William Bowman
Mallard, Elmer Crowell
Curlew, Mason Decoy Factoy
