Fish Decoy

John Cross, Fish Decoy, 20th century, carved and painted wood, painted copper sheet, ferrous eye hook, lead weight, and glass eyes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Alastair B. Martin, 1999.67.10
John Cross, Fish Decoy, 20th century, carved and painted wood, painted copper sheet, ferrous eye hook, lead weight, and glass eyes, 1 126 382 18 in. (3.816.35.5 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Alastair B. Martin, 1999.67.10

Artwork Details

Title
Fish Decoy
Artist
Date
20th century
Dimensions
1 126 382 18 in. (3.816.35.5 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Alastair B. Martin
Mediums Description
carved and painted wood, painted copper sheet, ferrous eye hook, lead weight, and glass eyes
Classifications
Subjects
  • Animal — fish
Object Number
1999.67.10

Artwork Description

Carved fish decoys are one of the earliest forms of American folk art. Hunters around the Bering Sea first used small bone or ivory decoys for ice fishing around 1000 AD. They believed that the decoys embodied the innua, or inner spirit of the fish. The practice spread to upstate New York and the Great Lakes, where it became a tourist industry with many communities growing around prime fishing areas. Ice fishing was banned in 1905, however, because the popularity of the sport had brought about a serious decline in large game fish. During the Depression, many hunters and fishermen turned again to fish spearing for survival. The decoys from this period are simpler, focusing on realistic shapes, colors, and movement rather than fanciful decoration (Steven Michaan, American Fish Decoys, 2003).

Works by this artist (7 items)

Adolphe Mouilleron, Stephen James Ferris, Devil's Way, Algiers, 1879, etching, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the National Museum of American History, Division of Graphic Arts, Smithsonian Institution, 1971.179
Devil’s Way, Algiers
Date1879
etching
Not on view
Stephen James Ferris, W.S. Baker, Esq., 1882, etching, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the National Museum of American History, Division of Graphic Arts, Smithsonian Institution, 1971.178
W.S. Baker, Esq.
Date1882
etching
Not on view
Stephen James Ferris, Musician and Dog, 1893, etching, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the National Museum of American History, Division of Graphic Arts, Smithsonian Institution, 1971.180
Musician and Dog
Date1893
etching
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

Edward Sachse, Smithsonian Institute, ca. 1855, hand-colored lithograph, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Al Marzorini in honor of Harry Lowe, 2019.23
Smithsonian Institute
Dateca. 1855
hand-colored lithograph
Not on view
Marching As to War
Daten.d.
color etching
Not on view
James Otto Lewis, TA-MA-KAKE-TOKE or the Woman that Spoke First; A Chippeway Woman (mourning), from The Aboriginal Portfolio, 1835, hand-colored lithograph on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of H. Lyman Sayen to his nation, 1973.167.62
TA-MA-KAKE-TOKE or the Woman that Spoke First; A Chippeway…
Date1835
hand-colored lithograph on paper
Not on view
James Otto Lewis, A Sioux Chief, from The Aboriginal Portfolio, 1835, hand-colored lithograph on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of H. Lyman Sayen to his nation, 1973.167.67
A Sioux Chief, from The Aboriginal Portfolio
Date1835
hand-colored lithograph on paper
Not on view