Sandblasted Bent Egg with Horn Tobacco Pipe

Pipe-making mastery comes with decades of experience, and with over six of them under his belt, Hans "Former" Nielsen is regarded as a living legend in the craft. When he was just 15, Former was hired to work in Poul Rasmussen's Copenhagen pipe shop, where he was steeped in elements of pipe engineering and artistry that formed a strong foundation for his career. He would then go on to work for W.Ø. Larsen, refining his skills, overseeing quality control, and training new carvers that joined the workshop. During this time he built his own workshop at home and began fashioning his own masterpieces, a proud tradition that this bent Egg now joins.

A supple, forward-surging rendition, it shows of plenty of Danish design cues, with a canted and softly chamfered rim, gradual, organic transition, and a subtle flare of shank that builds toward a mount of white and black horn. The hand-cut vulcanite stem fits snugly in the mount, and curls down just slightly to offer a comfortable smoking position. A crisp, dark sandblast brings out stacks of growth rings and blasted birdseye on the bowl's sides, while the rim is left smooth to assist in tobacco loading and stained a deep mahogany. Fit and finish inside and out is of course superb, making this pipe a fine centerpiece for even the most distinguished collection.