SANG at the Peabody

2007 Society of North American Goldsmiths Conference, was held in the famous Peabody hotel in Memphis.
The Peabody is known for its mallard ducks that spend from 11am to 5pm in the hotel lobby fountain. Evidently in the 1930's two prominent Memphis gentlemen while having drinks in the hotel, speculated that it'd be a hoot to leave some of their live decoys in the lobby fountain. People loved it and the ducks stayed, basically they're a 70 yr old pratical joke! There is a "duckmaster" in a red coat with braids who rounds up the ducks with a special staff. The ducks ride the elevator to the roof each evening where they live in a "palace" ..... well, a pretty nice cage anyway.