THE “DUST JACKET” MONIKER
The Harmon turned-head “dust jacket” plover, lot 275a.
The Mackey-O’Brien turned-head plover, made famous on the dust jacket of American Bird Decoys.
Of the thousands of decoys that William J. Mackey Jr. owned in his lifetime, he selected just thee birds for the cover of his early and influential volume American Bird Decoys, published in 1965. They were three elaborately carved and painted black-bellied plover by A. Elmer Crowell. It was from collectors referencing this iconic book that the term “dust jacket” plover came into being. John and Shirley Delph’s 1990 book, New England Decoys, also features a trio of related plover on its dust jacket along with an early turned-head wood duck by the same maker. The Delph’s choice further cemented the moniker for this elite shorebird group. All six of the aforementioned plover have been to auction, breaking up both trios. The New England Decoys cover This feeder is featured on the dust jacket cover of John and Shirley Delph’s New England Decoys. Private Collection.
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group has been reunited in a private collection. Today, the Delph and Harmon plover are the only two trios that remain together.