Lynn Bogue Hunt

For half a century, when America pictured wing shooting it pictured Lynn Bogue Hunt: canvasbacks dropping into decoys, grouse thundering out of cover, sailfish greyhounding behind a bait. He painted more than a hundred covers for the great outdoor magazines, illustrated the classic sporting books, and designed the 1939 federal duck stamp — and his original oils are prizes of the sporting art market.

Revere Auctions provides free auction estimates for Hunt’s work: send photographs of the front, back, and signature and our specialists will respond promptly.

Who Was Lynn Bogue Hunt?

Hunt was born in Honeoye Falls, New York in 1878 and grew up shooting and sketching along the marshes of western New York. Largely self-taught — taxidermy and field observation were his academy — he sold bird drawings to the sporting press while still a young man and moved to New York to work at the center of magazine publishing.

The golden age of the outdoor magazines was his: Field & Stream covers by the dozen, illustrations for Outdoor Life, Sports Afield, and the sporting book publishers, advertising work for the ammunition companies whose posters now hang in collections. In 1939 he designed the federal migratory bird hunting stamp — the “duck stamp” — a sporting artist’s laurel.

He painted and fished into his eighties, a familiar figure at Florida sailfishing camps, and died in 1960. Original Hunts — as opposed to the printed covers — have been chased by sporting collectors ever since.

What Did Hunt Paint?

The signature Hunts are waterfowl in action — ducks and geese over decoys or marsh — along with upland birds, gun dogs, and the big-game fish he helped make a sporting art subject. Most originals are oils painted for reproduction, which means strong design, full finish, and publication history.

Calendar and advertising originals for the powder and cartridge companies form a special group, crossing into the advertising-art market. Prints, calendars, and the magazines themselves circulate widely and trade far below the original paintings.

How Much Is My Lynn Bogue Hunt Painting Worth?

Several things determine what a work by Lynn Bogue Hunt brings at auction:

• Original versus print — the first question with Hunt — published images circulated by the million; the oils they were painted from are the value
• Subject — waterfowl over decoys lead; upland birds and fish follow closely
• Publication history — a documented cover or calendar origin adds provenance and appeal
• Condition — illustration boards and varnishes age; sound, unrestored surfaces are rewarded
• Size and finish — full cover-finished oils stand above studies and vignettes

The honest answer is that no two are alike, and the difference between an ordinary example and an exceptional one is a conversation with a specialist, not a chart. Send us photographs through our free auction estimate form — front, back, signature, and any labels — and we will tell you what you have.

The Market for Hunt

Original Hunt oils typically bring four to five figures at auction, with important waterfowl subjects well into five figures in recent years. The sporting art market prizes him as the era’s defining illustrator, and advertising originals draw crossover bidding.

If you are unsure whether yours is an original or a print, do not clean it, do not reframe it — send photographs, and our specialists will tell you free of charge.

How to Sell a Work by Hunt

The strongest results for a Lynn Bogue Hunt painting come at auction, where national and international collectors bid against each other. Revere Auctions offers free, no-obligation auction estimates: send photos and dimensions and our specialists respond with a current market valuation and a recommendation on how to sell. Consigned works are professionally photographed, cataloged, and marketed through our fine art auctions to a worldwide bidder base, and we regularly arrange shipping for consignors across the country. If you need a formal written valuation for insurance or estate purposes, our appraisal and valuation services team can help; you can also read more about how selling at auction works.

Related: American & Western paintings, our fine art department, appraisal services, free auction estimates.

Reviewed by the fine art specialists at Revere Auctions, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Lynn Bogue Hunt: Frequently Asked Questions

How much is a Lynn Bogue Hunt painting worth?

Original oils typically bring four to five figures at auction, with important waterfowl subjects higher. Prints and calendars trade far below originals. Revere Auctions provides free auction estimates.

How do I know if my Lynn Bogue Hunt is an original?

His images were printed by the million on magazine covers and calendars. Originals are paintings on canvas or board with real surface texture. Photographs — front, back, and a raking-light detail — let our specialists confirm, free.

What did Lynn Bogue Hunt design for the duck stamp?

The 1939-40 federal migratory bird hunting stamp. He also painted over a hundred magazine covers and illustrated classic sporting books across five decades.

Where can I sell a Lynn Bogue Hunt painting?

At auction with a house that reaches sporting art and Americana collectors. Revere Auctions offers free estimates and formal appraisals.

Exceptional Results