What's It Worth?
www.42outdoors.com W H A T ' S I T W O R T H ? OUTDOORS.COM I found these old duck hunting decoys at an estate recently, paying $5 each for them. Do you know how old they are, what they are called, and what they are worth? Roger S. Warrior Roger: You bought a nice lot of mallard drake and hen decoys made of what is known as paper mache decoys pro-duced in the 1930-50s by Carry-Lite. Easily portable because of the light-weight construction, these molded cardboard decoys were surprisingly durable and were quite popular for a long time among water fowlers. Carry-Lite was the most proli c of the paper mache waterfowl decoy makers, and mallards were their most popular models. Along with other duck and goose species the company made decoys of owls, crows and even doves. In terms of value, your decoys would be expected to fetch $5 to $20 each, depending on how motivated a poten-tial buyer or collector might be to get them. While I personally like paper mache decoys, high dollar spending collec-tors peruse auctions and the internet for wooden decoys made by famous carvers or well known companies such as Mason or Perdue. It if you have sporting collectibles such as old shing or hunting gear, vintage rearms, knives, or other related items that you want to know more about, contact me at dkirkemgruppe@aol.com. I will do my best to identify, appraise and suggest possible sales venues with you.