Preening Wigeon Drake
Charles "Shang" Wheeler (1872-1949)
Stratford, CT, c. 1930
13 in. long

“Charles Edward ‘Shang’ Wheeler is recognized as the most famous bird carver from Connecticut. While his Stratford predecessors Albert Laing (1811-1886), originally of New York City, and Benjamin Holmes (1843-1912) made many gunning decoys of exceptional quality, it was Wheeler who took the art form to the next level, producing everything from sandhill cranes to sailfish. Shang, as everyone called him, was an enigmatic figure: oysterman, politician, boxer, cartoonist, public speaker, conservationist, and world-renowned decoy carver.”
-Dixon Merkt, “Shang: A Biography of Charles E. Wheeler,” 1984

A classic, hollow-carved, turned-head wigeon with exceptional paint detail, including extensive combed vermiculation, scratched feather detail on the head, and two-tone scapulars. This is believed to be the finest Wheeler wigeon known.

Shang pronounced a reverence for waterfowl and an appreciation for their interactions with “superior decoys” in his chapter of Connett’s book. In summary, he states, “Today the men who really get birds when competition is tough are the ones most particular about having better decoys.”
Excellent original paint with light gunning wear and a tail chip.

Provenance: Thomas M. Evans Jr. Collection

Literature: Dixon MacD. Merkt, "Shang: A Biography of Charles E. Wheeler," Spanish Fork, UT, 1984, p. 161, pl. 171, straight-head wigeon illustrated.
Charles E. Wheeler and Eugene V. Connett, ed., "Duck Shooting Along the Atlantic Tidewater," New York, NY, 1947, pp. 72-74, Wheeler’s superior decoys illustrated and discussed.

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