Inside Decoys from Shelburne Museum

Black Duck Confidence Decoy 1967-131.2

Confidence decoys impart an added layer of realism to decoy rigs, enhancing details that give ducks confidence that the situation is safe for landing. This is accomplished by adding decoys of other species that are usually present among a flock of contented waterfowl. Confidence decoys also include birds carved to imitate feeding or sleeping birds, details that add to their sense of safety.

This black duck decoy is unusual in the vertical rather than horizontal lamination of the wood sections that make up its partially hollow body.  The movable head is also novel: the head is inset into a cavity in the neck, held in place with a metal hinging mechanism and attached to a rope that passes through a narrow metal frame on the bottom of the decoy.  This mechanism allows the head to be repositioned upright or in several forward positions to simulate feeding by moving the head into the desired position, then securing the rope within the narrow space in the bottom frame. The head can be retracted completely into a cavity in the neck and breast for storage and transport.  

The nails used to combine the five vertical wood sections are clearly visible in the anterior-posterior view radiograph. The hinging hardware that allows the neck to rotate up and down is also visible and consists of a metal rod that passes through a groove in center front underside of the neck, with a metal plate screwed in place overtop of the rod.  There is an additional rod that passes through the back of the neck and functions to hold the rope that is pulled to adjust and secure the position of the head.

These features are also visible in the lateral view radiographs, and it is helpful to see their positions when the head is raised and retracted. 
 

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