Exceptional Mallard Hen Decoy by The Ward Brothers

Lot 449

About Seller

65 Sharp Street
Hingham, MA 02043
United States

Copley Fine Art Auctions is the world's leading American sporting art auction company. Located in Hingham, MA, Copley specializes in antique decoys and 19th- and 20th-century American, sporting, and wildlife paintings. Principal Stephen O'Brien Jr., a fourth-generation sportsman with a refined colle...Read more

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About Auction

The Winter Sale 2023, Day 2 by Copley Fine Art Auctions

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The Winter Sale 2023, Day 2

By Copley Fine Art Auctions

Feb 25, 2023

Set Reminder 2023-02-25 10:00:00 2023-02-25 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : The Winter Sale 2023, Day 2 https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/copley/the-winter-sale-2023-day-2-11942 Lots 338-657 Copley Fine Art Auctions cinnie@copleyart.com

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Lot Description

Exceptional Mallard Hen
The Ward Brothers
Lemuel T. (1896-1984) and Stephen (1895-1976)
Crisfield, MD, 1938
17 1/4 in. long

"Stephen W. Ward (1895-1976) and his brother Lemuel Travis Ward (1896-1984) of Crisfield, Maryland were by far the most prominent Chesapeake Bay carvers of the twentieth century and among the greatest and most influential bird carvers of all time. The brothers worked closely together throughout their lives, combining the complementary talents of Steve's hand carving and Lem's brushwork to create works of extraordinary grace and realism." - Robert Shaw, "Bird Decoys of North America"

The Ward brothers were known to have made very few early mallards. It was not until the 1940s that mallard populations began to proliferate along the Atlantic Flyway. For this reason, mallard decoys by famous East Coast carvers, like Joseph Lincoln (1859-1938) and Harry V. Shourds (1861-1920), are almost non-existent. Beyond the overall rarity of early Ward mallards, the form, paint, and condition of this decoy place it as second to none among the species by the Wards or any decoy maker.

Illustrating the rarity of this exemplary hen, Ron Gard and Brian McGrath's thorough Ward Brothers "Collector's Guide" illustrates seventeen mallard decoys with no comparable hen. The closest hen is part of a very fine balsa pair from the Vance Strausburg Collection with slightly more modest paint described as follows: "The paint scheme could only be considered fancy and the extra time spent in painting is obvious." Lem took great pride in painting his hens, which routinely surpass their drake rigmates in regards to attention and detail.

A review of premier collections, including those of top Ward collectors Donal C. O'Brien Jr. and Dr. James M. McCleery, shows scores of Wards, including exceptional 1936-era drakes, with no hens.

Lem's ability to paint hens separates him from almost all of the other decoy painters to precede him. The paint application on the decoy reveals Lem's intricate feather patterns from the bill to the tail, with especially notable feathering on the head, two-tone ticking on the breast, and finely ticked feathers across the back.

The form of this decoy shows the height of refinement from the brothers' 1936-model era. In describing a closely related male from the Dr. Lloyd Griffith collection, Ward author Ronald Gard details the nuance of the makers' progression to that "Classic Mallard Drake." "This wonderful decoy," Gard states, "has all the ingredients of a 1936 classic but seems to be a slightly more proportioned bird the Wards have moved the design up one notch."

This lot features Steve's excellent carving with a turned head, full cheeks, and a flared and razor-thin bill. The sleek body has a high back and a thin, rounded tail.

The underside of the tail has a painted "L.T. WARD BROTHER 1938" inscription. The underside of this unused decoy has Kirson Collection markings and a Ward Museum exhibition sticker. It is making its auction debut as it was acquired privately by Kirson in 2009 from Vance Strausburg, who sourced it from the family of a Ward patron on the Delmarva Peninsula. A descendant of the Ward patron explained that its virtually flawless condition is a result of the decoy having been pulled from the rig by the gunner's wife who, recognizing its excellence, chose to put it on display in her home.
Excellent original paint with light wear, some craquelure to the end grain, mostly under the tail. One small dark spot on right flank.

Provenance: Private Delmarva Rig-Collection, acquired from the Ward Brothers
Donald Kirson Collection, acquired from Vance Strausburg in 2009

Literature: The Ward Museum, "Masters of Decoy and Wildfowl Carvings: The Kirson Collection," Salisbury, MD, 2011, p. 4, exact decoy illustrated. Ronald J. Gard and Brian J. McGrath, "The Ward Brothers' Decoys: A Collector's Guide," Plano, TX, 1989, pp. 82-86, no related hens illustrated, related drakes and balsa hen illustrated and discussed. EXHIBITED: Salisbury, Maryland, "Masters of Decoy and Wildfowl Carvings: The Kirson Collection," The Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art, July 2011 - February 2012.

Condition

Please email condition report requests to colin@copleyart.com. Any condition statement given is a courtesy to customers, Copley will not be held responsible for any errors or omissions. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition.
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