Sandblasted Pickaxe with Bamboo (741) Tobacco Pipe

Citing "every pipe ever made" as his influence, American artisan Bill Shalosky produces a wide array of shapes, each crafted with the attention to design and detail that have made him a household name among pipe smokers. The Pickaxe is a very rare shape from Shalosky, one we've only seen once before, and this particular example is a handsome one, with an excellent balance about its build. The transition is rather wide and is raised well above the heel into a more mid-set position, giving way to a short, swiftly tapering shank met by an organic extension of bamboo. Comprising four knuckles of the dense grass, this extension significantly enhances the shank's length, granting the pipe nearly seven inches worth of reach. At the left side of the shank, a divot in the bamboo has been extended into the briar to make for an organic look underscored by the inset mortise: allowing for the shank to nestle into the bamboo and create a cohesive look. The stem is a sleek saddle of demurely downturned black vulcanite, and it's carved with a sharp expansion ring at the base that nicely emulates the look of a bamboo knuckle, extending the rhythm of the accent while accelerating it near the aft. Up front, the bowl stands on a taut, flat heel that additionally allows the entire composition to sit stably, impressively balancing the shank. The walls this heel supports flare out expressively to a broad rim, and they take on an extremely dynamic curve that bows out at the fore in proud, eye-catching fashion and cants rearward slightly to further hold one's attention. Dressed in a rich, auburn-tinged sandblast, the stummel showcases handsome grain, with the bowl revealing vertical growth rings over the rim and through the shanks, while the fore wall displays a vast sea of birdseye.