Description

VINTAGE 'CAPTAIN BOB JOBES' DRAKE BLUE BILL DUCK DECOY HAND CARVED ~ HAND PAINTED ~ SOLID WHITE PINE BODY SIGNED AND DATED 2003 ON BOTTOM HAVRE de GRACE, MARYLAND ~ UPPER CHESAPEAKE BAY ~ SUSQUEHANNA FLATS This week on Ebay, just in time for Christmas, we are offering up this beautiful, vintage, male Blue Bill Duck decoy ~~ This is a terrific, original, vintage, signed and dated, Captain Bob Jobes Maryland Upper Chesapeake Bay, hand carved and hand painted, wooden Drake Blue Bill Scaup Duck Hunting Decoy. 'Captain' Bobby Jobes is a local, world-renown, Chesapeake Bay decoy carver. He is the eldest son of legendary Upper Bay carver Captain Harry Jobes and the godson of the local, legendary decoy master R. Madison Mitchell. This decoy was made here in Havre de Grace, MD, at the top of the Chesapeake Bay, on the Susquehanna Flats, and carved, crafted & painted in the traditional, time-honored Upper Bay style using solid hardwood, likely White Pine, which the Jobes family was known to use for most of their decoys. It still retains all of it's excellent original paint, including lifelike painted eyes. This decoy is carved just slightly smaller than life size and measures approximately 12" long, 6" tall and 5" wide. It is hand signed with black permanent marker on the underside of the duck: "Capt. Bob Jobes 2003" This fantastic Blue Bill decoy is in nice original condition, with beautiful coloring and details. He has been in my personal 'flock' of local Maryland decoys for many years, ever since I purchased him at Bob's decoy shop, down on Ostego street, over 20 years ago. I've kept him on display with the rest of my collection, on a shelf, out of direct sunlight, in a smoke free home. I've rotated him to prevent any color fading and wiped him down using natural wood cleaners a few times over the years, but otherwise, he's just been hanging out in my collection. Despite just being displayed, this nearly full-size decoy does have some very mild surface wear on the head and some normal light marks from use & display. The only noticeable 'flaw' is a small 'scratch' on the right side of his neck. I've been tempted many times over the years to touch it up with a felt tip marker, but decided to just let it be. It adds character and authenticity. Otherwise, this decoy looks fantastic and displays great. No cracks, chips, damage or significant issues. He's a little 'dusty' and slightly dirty. I wiped it down before taking pictures, but I'm sure it would look much better and brighter with a deep cleaning. I'll leave that up to the new owner. I was always afraid to damage it by cleaning it, so I've left it alone all these years. Also, some of my photos show the decoy on a wooden block. The 'stand' is just a spare chunk of wood used for photos, not original to the piece, and is NOT included. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CAPTAIN BOB JOBES AND THE JOBES FAMILY OF DECOY CARVERS Decoy carving has a long tradition here in Havre de Grace on the Chesapeake Bay. The town is known for its many fine carvers over the years: R. Madison Mitchell, Jim Currier, Charles Bryan, Charlie 'Speed' Joiner, Jimmy Pierce, James Currier, and many others, but one of the best known and most collectible of the 'modern' carvers are the decoys made by the legendary Captain Harry Jobes. Captain Harry Jobes was born in 1936 and carved masterful gunning bird decoys for over 70 years. His carving career began sanding duck heads after school in local master Charlie Barnard’s decoy shop at the age of 9. After Barnard passed away, Harry Jobes began working for another legendary local carver, R. Madison Mitchell. Mitchell was the local mortician, who made and sold exquisite decoys in his spare time, which was often plentiful. R. Madison Mitchell's decoys are some of the best, most realistic, most collected, and most valuable of all the Upper Chesapeake Bay carvers. Captain Harry worked for the famous R. Madison Mitchell for nearly 25 years. Harry learned many of Mitchell's carving skills, techniques and painting skills. Harry also learned head whittling and head carving from local carver Bailey Moltz, one of the best in the Upper Bay region. Harry became a legendary local master carver himself and eventually opened his own shop. For almost 35 years, he was one of the best, most prolific, contemporary waterfowl and decoy carvers in the area, making some of the best gunning and ornamental decoys on the Upper Chesapeake Bay. His decoys are highly collectible and he's also remembered locally for his tremendous, tireless efforts to support and promote the art of decoy carving here in Harford County. Harry worked skippering a patrol boat at the local Aberdeen Proving Grounds and research vessels for the state of Maryland, but his true joy was being a Waterman. He ran his own charter boat for many years and spent his life hunting and fishing along the Susquehanna Flats. Captain Harry's other love was for his family. Harry had 3 sons; Bobby, Charles and Joey who all all grew up playing and working in his shop, learning all their father's skills. All three of his sons followed him into the decoy business and each of them is a talented carver and painter. They have all enjoyed long and highly productive careers making decoys and the demand for their decoys constantly exceeds their ability to produce them. They all had their own shops in town, but they also worked together at times. They all frequented Capt Harry's original Decoy Shop and were all under their father's watchful eye, constantly learning and getting advice and tips. ~ By far, the best and most gifted decoy maker of the 3 boys was Bobby, his oldest son, born in 1959. Bobby is the Godson of R. Madison Mitchell and has both that master's and his father's 'gift'. Bobby literally grew up in his father's busy shop, hand sanding heads, spoke-shaving decoys, running the machines, painting, and learning the craft and art of decoy making from his father, absorbing all the knowledge and skills he could. Bobby Jobes’ time spent in his dad's shop also exposed him to many of the other local talented decoy crafters in the area and he learned from them all. Many of the local Havre de Grace carvers all knew each other, met and talked often, shared their knowledge, and passed it down. The Jobes decoy shop was a common meeting place. Havre de Grace and Harford County has many second-generation artisan carvers who learned the craft from their fathers and other local master carvers. Bob Jobes is one of them. Bob enthusiastically took what he learned from his father, and other local masters, and then opened his own shop, raising the area’s decoy craft to a new level. Bob's decoys have the traits of the traditional Havre de Grace decoy carvers, with his own personal touches, but mostly reflect the carving techniques and paintwork of his father Harry, and Harry's mentor, R. Madison Mitchell. This Blue Bill decoy is a perfect example. Looking at Mitchell's, Harry's and Bobby's Blue Bill decoys, lined up side by side, you can see many similarities and see the clear lineage of technique handed down over the years. Bob learned much of his painting skills from his father, who learned them from the master, R. Madison Mitchell. You can see distinct similarities in the painting style between Mitchell's and Bobby's decoys. Captain Bob has become one of Havre de Grace's most respected decoy artists, following in the local tradition of this area, handed down from the great masters of the profession, and has been carving decoys now for over thirty years. The Jobes' family decoy shop is still located behind the Jobes family home on Otsego Street here in Havre de Grace. There they preserve the historical and cultural legacy of waterfowling and decoy making on the Upper Chesapeake Bay. The Jobes shop is where I purchased this decoy back in 2003. The Jobes boys are all traditional Chesapeake Bay watermen. Over the years, Bob has been a commercial waterman, a duck hunting guide, as well as a charter boat captain. He still crabs and fishes and his family runs a popular seafood shop here in Havre de Grace. Capt. Harry proudly watched his son's careers take off, but slowed down his own carving, painting and decoy production around 2015 due to health issues. He passed away in May, 2019 at 82 years young. The Jobes family decoys, especially Harry's and Bob's, are very highly regarded and collected. Bobby's decoys have been featured in many books, museums and are part of many private collections all across the nation. Captain Bob's most famous pieces are likely his large white Swan figures, painted with a unique American flag design on their chests. If you collect Duck Decoys or just appreciate the craftmanship, art and Americana you need to have at least one Jobes decoy from here in Havre de Grace, home to so many famous carvers, in your collection. This Bob Jobes Blue Bill decoy would make a great addition to any collection. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "UPPER BAY" DUCK DECOYS This Blue Bill decoy was carved right here in Havre de Grace, in the 'Upper Bay' area of the Chesapeake, and has certain 'Upper Bay' characteristics. Upper Bay makers tended to carve larger, heavier, nearly full-sized decoys for use on the big, open water of the 'Flats' here, where the Susquehanna river enters into the Bay. On the flats, hunters often used bigger spreads of decoys and the very shallow water allowed the hunter to stand out, in and among the decoys, or behind a duck blind to shoot from. Upper Bay hunters often used decoys that had wider bodies and rounded, smoother bottoms to allow them to roll and dance to the movement of the waves in the open water. Upper Bay decoys, like this example, tend to have more attention focused on the heads and the 'backs' or tops of the decoys than on the lower bodies and sides. The wide open water of the Upper Bay had large flocks of birds coming in down the Atlantic flyway so it was more important that decoys had the correct 'look' when seen from above. They had to have a nicely carved head and neck appearance that exaggerated the bird’s species-specific, unique eye and beak colors, and unique head characteristics, to birds passing overhead. The carved head on this decoy shows Bob's attention to detail. The accurate rounded shape of the head, the pointed notch at the top of the bill near the forehead, the carved details that separate the bill from the face, the accurate shape and unique blue color of the bill, perfectly placed and painted eyes, the seamless attachment of the head to the body, and other fine details, set this decoy apart from cheaper, lower quality decoys. A lesser quality decoy carver wouldn't have spent the time and effort to get those tiny details correct. There's even a slight 'shine' to the head, and anyone who has seen these Blue Bills up close knows that their heads have a certain purple-ish iridescence in certain lighting situations. The coloring and feather pattern on the 'top' or back of an Upper Bay decoy had to look convincing as well, not so much close-up, but from a slight distance, to attract birds passing by overhead. The top of this decoy has a mix of mottled black, grey and white colors and lines. Up close, the feather pattern on the back does not show any specific detail, but from a short distance away, the feathers look very realistic and perfectly suggest the bird's tucked in wings and feathers, a life-like pattern that would be easily recognized by passing birds above. This Jobes Blue Bill decoy is a perfect example of an 'Upper Bay' style of decoy. Although not as critical on this 'display' decoy, Upper Bay 'gunning' or working decoys also had to have the proper appearance sitting in the water, the proper positioning and the right 'sit' on the surface to pull other birds in. Blue Bills were large birds and had big heavy back legs to help them dive. They sat very low in the water, with their butts sitting even lower. Many 'gunning' Blue Bill decoys have extra weights placed towards the back end to make them sit just right in the water. The Upper Bay had more open, often choppy, water, so the decoy's head, top, color pattern and stance in the water is what 'showed', what other passing ducks saw, and what had to be 'correct' to draw those passing birds in close. This prime example of a Blue Bill decoy has most of those 'Upper Bay' features, which is appropriate since this decoy was carved right here in Havre de Grace, on the Susquehanna Flats, at the top of the Chesapeake Bay. Ducks in the Lower Bay tended to be more spread out, in smaller clusters of birds, so Lower Bay decoys tended to have more accurate side details, distinct wing patterns and outlines, clearer feather details, and more distinct side profile details than Upper Bay decoys. As a general rule, Lower Bay decoys generally attracted ducks from lower altitude or from the side, not from high above. This Upper Bay decoy's sides just show generalized speckling and the general 'correct' color pattern, Black/White/Black, again, no specific wing or feathering detail like you'd see on many Lower Bay decoys. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Making an accurate, high quality, Blue Bill decoy that actually worked and attracted birds was very challenging. Some ducks, like Mallards, are not very bright and can be drawn into range with just about anything 'duck shaped' that floats. As a poor young teen, we used old plastic white Clorox jugs tied to a rock, which worked amazingly well. Blue Bills are very smart ducks and not easily fooled by low quality decoys. Unlike many other ducks, they tend to be very species-specific, and are only attracted by decoys that look like themselves. The unique rounded shape of the head and distinctive blue color of the bill had to be carved just right and the coloration, especially when viewed from above, had to be 'correct'. You can tell that this decoy was carved and painted by a skilled master, a true artist, who really studied and understood his subject. It's beautifully carved, masterfully painted, and has lots of subtle detail. The unique rounded shape and slope of the head is very accurate. The color pattern of the body, facial details, and beak shape & unique color, are all captured perfectly. It's very accurate and 'correct'. Although this decoy was designed to be a display piece and not a real 'working' or "gunning" decoy, it is very realistic, well-crafted, and would be sure to attract ducks if out on the water. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ That's the cool thing about old Decoys. Each one allows the original carver's thoughts, skills, craftsmanship, and individual technique to show through, making each one an individual statement and a unique piece of art. No two are ever identical. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Decoys have been a central element of Upper Chesapeake Bay culture for centuries and, for most of that time, waterfowling, duck decoy carving and decoy makers have all been synonymous with the historic town of Havre de Grace, Maryland. Havre de Grace is located here at the mouth of the bay on the Susquehanna Flats, one of the most famous duck hunting areas on the Chesapeake Bay. Havre de Grace, the 'Duck Decoy Capital of the World' is well-known as the cradle of American decoy carving. Many of the best and legendary Upper Chesapeake Bay carvers, who could turn a simple block of wood into a functional work of art, were based, and are still based, right here around Havre de Grace. There is a fantastic Decoy Museum here that hosts the National Decoy show each year. The museum showcases one of the finest collections of working and decorative Chesapeake Bay decoys ever assembled, and the staff preserve the historical and cultural legacy of waterfowling and decoy making on the Chesapeake Bay. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BLUE BILL DUCKS ON THE CHESAPEAKE BAY This decoy was carved and painted to represent a Drake Blue Bill duck, one of the large 'diving ducks' that are seen out on the Chesapeake Bay every year in large numbers. Our local Chesapeake Bay, and its 19 major tributaries, offer refuge to over 20 different species of ducks, as well as Canada geese, but few other North American waterfowl species look anything like a Blue Bill. They are very popular with the locals, visiting birdwatchers and photographers. The vast majority of real 'working' duck decoys were predominantly modeled after the more colorful male of the species, as they were better at attracting species-specific birds to within the range of the waterman's guns. Later, more modern carvers, who create more collectible and finely crafted artistic decoys, often carved sets or pairs of male and female decoys, but the vast majority of old, authentic 'working' decoys out there are male versions. This decoy is a prime example of a male Blue Bill Duck. The lesser Scaup, more commonly known as a Blue Bill for obvious reasons, is a lager-sized duck and are not exclusive to the Chesapeake Bay. They are very common North American ducks, found in all four of our nation's flyways, and eagerly hunted all across the Country. Our local Chesapeake Bay Blue Bills migrate from their breeding grounds and summer homes in eastern Canada and follow the Atlantic flyway to the brackish water and marshes of the Chesapeake Bay every fall to 'winter' on the bay, leaving again in the Spring. Blue Bills, like most divers, tend to congregate in large flocks or “rafts” numbering in the hundreds, if not thousands of individuals, and are usually found in the shallow, more vegetated areas on the Chesapeake Bay, like our local Flats. Blue Bills are fairly active foragers, feeding mostly on aquatic vegetation and grasses. They prefer eelgrass, or wild celery, which grows just under the surface, and is common in certain shallower areas of the bay, like the local Susquehanna Flats. Small mollusks and aquatic insects are also on the menu for Blue Bills. Blue Bills are a diving duck, which means they find food by flipping their body horizontally and nose-diving into the water, using their large back legs to propel them. They can be seen diving and resurfacing frequently, looking for the best bits and that perfect snack to help them regain their strength after a long migration from up North. Drakes, or males, have a dark head, chest, and rear, which contrasts with their white sides and gray back. The drakes have a striking, large, rounded, dark black head which may show purple-ish iridescent tones depending on the light. Males have a short, thick, jet-black neck and black breast. Males also have a grayish, silvery-white back and sides, and bright white belly feathers. Their primary feathers are mostly grey-ish white. The birds have a black rump and tail. Their large legs and feet, used for diving, are a bluish-gray color. Their bills are sloped and classically 'duck-shaped' and have a unique, uniform, pale blue color. Blue Bills also have a distinct black nail marking, the tip at the end of their blue bill. One of the most striking features of male Blue Bills is their distinctive, intense yellow eyes, which are bright yellow during mating season in the spring, but less intense by the time they arrive here on the Bay in the winter. Their large, round, iridescent heads, yellow eyes, and alternating black/white/black bodies make them easy to recognize out on the water. Their average length is about 17 inches and they can weigh in excess of 2 pounds. Females are slightly smaller, and like most species of ducks on the Bay, have dark eyes, a brownish head, chest, and tail, with patches of white in the body. They have a distinct white patch at the base of their blue bills and have the same black nail at the tip as males. Like most divers, the Blue Bill's legs are back towards his tail, and he sits low in the water and they are usually pretty 'chill' and quiet when out on the water. The males aren't very vocal and don't chirp and quack like most ducks. They make a short, deep low 'whistle' instead of a higher pitched quack like other species. When startled or spooked, these ducks are fun to watch take off. They literally use their big powerful legs to run across the surface of the water until they gain enough speed to take off. Once airborne, they are very fast flyers and can easily reach speeds up to 50 miles an hour. If you see a flock of ducks flying by, going faster than your car on the ground, its almost always either a flock of Blue Bills or flock of Canvasbacks, another fast flyer. Blue Bills have a very notable white stripe on their secondary feathers when in flight, distinguishing them from Canvasbacks. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ THE HISTORY OF DECOYS AND DUCK HUNTING ON THE CHESAPEAKE BAY The use of duck hunting decoys has been around for hundreds of years, but their popularity took off in the 1850s as a way to attract a larger number of ducks to hunt and sell. From the 1850s through the World War I era, decoys were produced in large quantities in the United States, but they quickly transitioned from being handmade, handcrafted 'sculptures' to machine made factory 'product'. Some factory made decoys, like the Maxon ones out of Detroit, Stevens decoys made in Weedsport, NY, and Herter are quite well-made and very collectible, but as time went on, the quality of mass produced decoys declined. After WWII, there was a lot of surplus, lightweight Balsa Wood available, and many carvers switched over to that type of wood as it was easier to carve, but the true Masters continued to use the traditional woods, Pine and Cedar, which allowed fine carving details to stand out, plus it retained fine woodgrain, which adds to the naturalistic 'realism' of the carvings. By the 1950's, the quality of regular 'gunning' or working decoys generally continued to suffer. The introduction of plastics, injection molding, and mass production further dropped the cost and quality of decoys. Also in the 50s and 60's, drastic changes in gun and hunting laws, stamps & licensing fees, daily bag-limit laws, and social disapproval, all led to duck hunting becoming less popular as a sport. The demand for quality, hand-made decoys severely dropped off. Many of the traditional, individual, craftsmen, who still carved fine decoys in wood just couldn't compete with these new technologies and dwindling demand. That effectively put an end to mass commercial carving and painting of decoys and left only a handful of artists and woodworking craftsmen who did it out of deep love and respect for the traditional craft. ~~ Early decoys were basic, simple, utilitarian representations of ducks and geese, rough-hewn from wood. They were just meant to get the job done and put food on the table. The fact that some of them were beautiful, accurately carved, realistically painted, and well made, was just a nice benefit of their creator's hard work. Back then, no one considered them 'art' and nobody paid much attention to collecting decoys until 1934, when Joel Barber wrote the first recognized book on collectible decoys, 'Water Fowl Decoys'. His book was a real game-changer and made people start to appreciate decoys as a fading part of history and as a fine American Folk art form. In 1968, the first largely publicized decoy auction was held and vintage duck decoys suddenly became much more noticed, valuable and collectible when an old black-duck decoy carved by master Elmer Crowell sold for $900. Recognition was finally being given to some of the fine old decoys and what proud, individual, skilled craftsmen those early carvers really were. Ever since then, the hand-made duck decoy went from the sportsman market to the collector and fine art market. This has led to a renewed appreciation of both the 'old school' decoy carvers and well as the new modern 'artisan' decoy makers, and helped elevate their work to the level of fine American folk art, rather than a simple waterman's tool, something you just threw out in the water to draw the ducks in. Today's contemporary artisan waterfowl carvers produce much smaller numbers of highly detailed, sophisticated decoys as works of art, with deep respect to their long history, and still using the century-old skills that have been passed down from master to apprentice for generations. These days, decoys attract many more collectors than waterfowl, and you're much more likely to find a decoy sitting on a collector’s shelf than floating out in a duck hunter’s spread on the water. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Two centuries ago, in Colonial times, 4 to 5 million ducks and geese spent time on Chesapeake Bay during the winter. Many Blue Bills used to winter on the Chesapeake Bay and it's rivers, Millions of them. Their dark black iridescent heads stretched as far as you could see, but those numbers are now much lower. Up until the Civil War, waterfowl hunting and shooting ducks for food was done on a small local subsistence level, It was just a traditional way of life in small waterfront communities. After the Civil War, better, more accurate shotguns and waterfowling guns were available. Interest in guns and sport hunting began to grow and waterfowl hunting prospered, especially here on the Chesapeake Bay, both for sport and for eating. Blue Bills are relatively large ducks, with a big body and powerful muscular legs. Each one can weigh well over 2 pounds. This made them prized and hunted for their size and meat back in the day when people ate more ducks. Local Chesapeake Bay hunters had already known for years that Blue Bills and Canvasbacks were among the finest tasting ducks. Their meat was considered one of the tastiest of all the ducks due to their consumption of mostly wild celery, which gave them a unique flavor, one that set it apart and above most other ducks. You are what you eat, as they say. Following the Civil War, America's population began to surge and the demand for food increased across the country. Wild game, especially waterfowl, became popular table food in many parts of the Country. A plump duck or goose was considered fine dining at the time. By the late 1800s, fresh Chesapeake waterfowl was often on the menu at the finest Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York City restaurants. Around the same time, new ways to preserve and refrigerate meat was becoming available. Fresh ducks could now be shipped by train from remote areas of the Bay to urban restaurants and food stores where people started to appreciate the great taste of Blue Bills, Canvasbacks, and other local ducks. Demand for Blue Bill ducks exploded and the prices rose as well. The large flocks of birds on the Chesapeake Bay seemed unlimited and were a natural bounty that could be harvested year after year, creating regular income and jobs for local Watermen and hunters, transforming their lives. As the demand for gamebirds rose, there was also a need for larger numbers of the decoys used to attract them. Some small local Chesapeake Bay carvers expanded from carving for themselves, or their local hunting club, to carving decoys for sale to others. The decoys that worked best, also sold best, and many local carvers, especially here around Havre de Grace and the Flats, where huge numbers of birds were hunted, soon became 'famous' for their decoys. The 1920s and 30s were the 'Golden Years' of Upper Chesapeake Decoy Carvers and resulted in some 'Master' carvers that we know and recognize today for their accurate detail, realism, and amazing painting skills. Industrial-scale hunting of ducks on the Bay was becoming common. Many commercial Watermen used long, massive shotguns, called Punt guns. These could kill multiple birds in a float with just one shot. This led to a vast overhunting of both Blue Bills and Canvasbacks and nearly led to their demise, at least here on the Chesapeake. Extensive market hunting, along with human encroachment and habitat loss, had brought the estimated Blue Bill population from Millions down to an all-time low. Congress then passed the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which outlawed market hunting, allowing the local duck population to recover. During the depression, many people turned to duck hunting to feed their family and quality decoys were one again in big demand. This caused a slight decline in Blue Bill populations. The birds suffered another major decline in the 30's, due to the drought that caused the midwestern Dust Bowl. In the early 1940's, both sportsmen and Carvers were off to War, using their guns for things other than Duck hunting, and the interest in duck hunting fell drastically, allowing the Blue Bill population to recover. In the 1950's, as the Midwest became more built up and developed after the war, the drainage of small wetlands diminished breeding grounds, and the population of ducks in general declined once again. Starting in the 1960's, a gradual decline in the Chesapeake Bay's water quality greatly reduced the amount of underwater Bay grasses and wild celery, leading to a further decline in duck numbers. Waterfront development, pollution, spent lead shot pellets, and rising global temperatures have all drastically affected the number of Ducks on the Bay over the years. Tropical Storm Agnes in 1972, made a direct hit on the Susquehanna Flats here at the top of the bay. This storm devastated the wild celery supply and many Blue Bills and other ducks had to move further south in search of food. Duck hunting here on the famous 'flats' has never fully recovered. You still see many rafts of Blue Bills on the Bay every fall, but they've been forced to adapt and have switched their foraging effort and diet from grasses to include small clams, snails, mollusks, and insects found on the Chesapeake’s shallow bottom. Today, Blue Bills don't have a whole lot of threats or enemies on the Bay other than Pollution, Chemicals, and Humans. Waterfowl species and millions of acres of wetland habitat here in Maryland have benefited from our strong conservation efforts, strict hunting season and bag limits, duck stamp fees, and other efforts to keep our duck population strong. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This is a terrific, original, vintage Captain Bob Jobes, Upper Chesapeake Bay Maryland, hand carved and hand painted Blue Bill duck decoy. I've loved this locally carved Bob Jobes decoy from the very moment I saw it many years ago, but it's time to pass him on to a new owner who will hopefully appreciate it as much as I have. It's a fantastic example of an Upper Bay Blue Bill decoy and truly represents the rich history of decoy carving here in Havre de Grace and this unique Folk Art of Maryland. No decoy enthusiast or collector should be without a local Havre de Grace decoy in their collection and this nice original Captain Bob Jobes Decoy will be the highlight of anyone's collection. A vintage classic Jobes Family decoy should be in any collection. A true collectible for duck lovers, decoy collectors, naturalists, wetlands conservationists, or nature lover. It would make a terrific addition to any collection or a wonderful gift for the Holidays. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This decoy needs special attention and handling, so shipping cost within the lower 48 states is $7.50 for this nice decoy. If you would like insurance, or anything faster than Economy Mail, please let me know and I can arrange it for you. I’ll work with you to make sure you’re happy! I'm a 0ne-man operation, this is a hobby, not my job. I do this for fun. I do this because I love collecting and want others to share in that same experience. I take my time researching, grading, listing and packaging. I will NOT sell any items that I personally would not want in my collection. My descriptions and grading are fair and honest and I will ALWAYS refund you for anything you’re not happy with. I have had over 3,600 happy and satisfied EBay customers, with 100% positive feedback, over the years and I have been buying/selling on ebay for over 25 years, so please bid with confidence! All orders are processed and shipped within 2 business days of receipt. We package and ship our items with the greatest care, using the proper packaging to ensure that your rare and collectible treasures arrive in pristine condition. Payments can be made by any of the options EBay offers. I will be happy to exchange feedback with anyone I complete a transaction with. THANK YOU for looking and reading if you got this far. Sorry for going on so long about Decoys and Blue Bills, but they are obviously one of my passions. HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU AND YOURS AND WE WISH YOU MUCH PEACE AND PROSPERITY IN THE YEAR TO COME!! ~~ JOHN