Coot 1952-192.242
The coot is made from two pieces of wood secured by means of two wire nails. The heads of both nails are counter-sunk and covered with a fill material so that the surface of the head and neck appear smooth. A wire staple holds a ring to the front of the decoy, and a cylindrical lead weight with tapered ends is secured to the underside of the decoy with a pair of wire nails, each measuring about 3.5 cm.
If an adhesive was used to assemble the decoy, that joint has failed. The lateral view radiograph shows a gap between the two pieces of wood. A single piece of shot is evident within the decoy, located within the bill. It is likely the cause of the split in the bill and the reason the bill is overpainted.
Splits in the wood are evident through the coot’s neck in the lateral radiographic view. Splits in the body are evident in the anterior-posterior view, and appear to emanate from a knot in the wood.
