Lateral view radiograph, volume rad slice 15/32 of Yellowlegs Stick-up 1963-60.21
1 2017-06-27T08:26:08-07:00 Lesley Day Mirling 3670b61b9eba655d6cf36db8e509081714fc05b1 4136 2 Example of an early papier-mâché decoy. This volume rad slice shows the interior end of the carved wood bill, visible as a square shape in the back of the head. This radiograph was produced in the Clinical Radiology department at the University of Vermont Medical Center. plain 2017-08-05T14:51:00-07:00 1963-60.21 Shelburne Museum Nancie Ravenel bc84e2b969fab7c5f039797f42318c7fcfc8159bThis page is referenced by:
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Papier-mâché decoy
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Yellowlegs Shorebird Stick-up, 1963-60.21
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Decoys made from found materials such as driftwood and cork are more commonly known, but paper- another widely available material- was also used to make decoys. Early papier-mâché decoys were made from newspapers and brown paper bags, molded and held together with a waterproof adhesive (Earnest 1965; 101). Papier-mâché decoys were first commercially manufactured using paper pulp formed in molds prior to WWII and continued in production until the early 1960s. Carry-Lite Decoys of Milwaukee was one of the earliest manufacturers, beginning production in 1939 (Fleckenstein 1981).
Dating to c. 1870, this yellowlegs shorebird stick-up is a rare, early example of a decoy made of papier-mâché. In areas where the painted surface is lost, brown paper is visible. When viewed under an ultraviolet source, patches where paint is missing show a bright orange autofluorescence, similar in appearance to the autofluorescence of shellac when viewed under UV, indicating that shellac is present as a binding material for the paper layers or as a sealant layer that was applied before the paint.
It is evident by its simple and non-uniform appearance that this decoy was not made using a mold, and it was radiographed in order to learn more about its method of manufacture; for example, whether there was an internal support structure around which the paper layers were formed.
The radiographs show that a metal tube is inserted vertically into the center of the body and the wood stick-up dowel is inserted into the tube. Slits were cut in the top of the tube, and the metal was bent out horizontally, which serves to support the interior of the upper back.
The radiopaque surface layer is likely lead paint. Wrinkles and pitted surfaces in the paper substrate are visible, as well as dark lines and shapes where paint has been lost. In some locations on both axial and lateral view (likely where the paint is thinner) a material that appears similar in appearance to wire mesh is visible under the papier-mâché layer. In lateral view volume rad slices the mesh material becomes more clearly visible under the paper and paint layer.
In another lateral volume rad slice (Image set 1007: 15/32), a small square comes into view that is the interior end of the bill, anchored at the very back of the head.
