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the middle. Because duck hunters use decoys to be on every collector’s reading list, Bosworth
try and lure in the real thing, but then there are notes.
people who don’t hunt, but who love to collect A more recent survey, which covers the en-
duck decoys. tire U.S. and Canada and has far better illustra-
According to writer T. Thompson Bosworth, tions according to Bosworth, is “The Great Book
Collecting decoys is a fascinating hobby, full of of Wildfowl Decoys,” edited by Joe Engers. The
history, beautiful things to look at, and good authors provide a once-over-lightly for most of
friends with whom to spend time. However, he the important decoy producing areas, and a fi-
writes that there are pitfalls, and many will be
better off if they can obtain some decent advice nal chapter on collecting and caring, by former
early on. Shelburne Museum curator Bob Shaw.
Bosworth notes that during the past 170 Gene and Linda Kangas’ book “Decoys” is
years, there have been thousands of decoy mak- also valuable both for the illustrations and espe-
ers who made hundreds of thousands of decoys. cially for the essays on aspects of collecting, in-
If you don’t focus, you will be overwhelmed cluding discussions of buying at auction and the
with the variety. “It is important to focus your pitfalls of fakes and undisclosed restorations.
collecting and maintain your focus until you They have an excellent section on caring for de-
have either mastered that area or decided that coys, with recommendations from several mu-
it isn’t as interesting as you first thought. Pick seum conservators. The book is worth getting
something, learn it well, and move on to an- for that chapter all by itself.
other. Keep repeating that and you will become Like I have written, there are many doz-
knowledgeable and develop a good collection.” ens of decoy books, so choose wisely and make
How To Give Yourself I have personally observed that online there sure you have enough funds to purchase at least
The Bird by Chuck N. Baker are many dozens of books about decoy collect- several of them. As with almost any type of col-
ing. And I am certain there are many more that
are not listed online. But Bosworth gives a few lecting, there is an official organization that peo-
There are thousands of hunters who spe- good examples: Joel Barber’s “Wildfowl Decoys” ple can belong to. The North American Decoy
cialize in various types of animals they go af- provides an excellent introduction by the first Collectors Association is the one in this case.
ter. Duck hunting is a very popular sport. And known decoy collector. Seminal folk art dealer Type their name into Google and you’ll get all
I know there are many individuals who distain Adele Earnest’s “The Art of the Decoy” and Wm. the current association information.
hunting of any type. But there are others right in F. Mackey’s “American Bird Decoys” should also
that, as the October birthstone, it brought bad
luck to any wearer born in any other month.
However, Queen Victoria, who was born in May,
defied superstitions with her love of opals. She
wore opal jewelry, gave it as gifts and promoted
the newly established Australian opal mines. By
the art nouveau period of the late 1800s, opals
were a favorite stone for jewelry. Perhaps this in-
OPAL GLASS fluenced the popularity of opal glass.
Crystal, amethyst, amber, emerald, ruby:
Decorative glass is often made to capture the * * *
vivid color and intense sparkle of gemstones. It Q: I am wondering how much my 1932 Luke
isn’t limited to transparent stones, either. A type Appling jersey might be worth. The interesting
of opaque matte glass called opal glass or opal- thing about this jersey is that it is the only year
ine became popular in Europe in the mid-19th that Mr. Appling wore the number 8 over his
century. historic career.
Inspired by Venetian lattimo (milk glass) A: Luke Appling was a shortstop for the
made since the 1500s and English Bristol glass Chicago White Sox from 1930 to 1950. He was
of the 1700s, opal glass is a semi-opaque glass, inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1964.
usually white or a light color, with a slight iri-
descent sheen. Decorators found that it made a Game-worn jerseys are some of the most valu-
beautiful background for gilt or enamel designs, PHOTO CREDIT: Courtesy of Alderfer Auction- able items in sports collecting; recently, the jer-
Opal glass, also called opaline, shares the opacity,
like this blue opaline vase that sold at Alderfer pale color and iridescent shimmer of opal, the sey Babe Ruth wore for the 1932 World Series
Auction for $307. October birthstone. sold for $24.1 million at Heritage Auctions, a
The auction described the vase as “French record price for sports collectibles. Important
style,” and opaline was at its most popular in powers and healing properties in ancient and factors include the jersey’s age, condition, rari-
France in the mid-to late-1800s. About the medieval times, it was considered unlucky in ty and historical significance. If your jersey is a
same time, the opal gemstone experienced a re- the 1800s. game-worn one, not a replica, it could be worth
surgence in popularity. Believed to have magic One of the superstitions surrounding it is hundreds or thousands of dollars.
