Sandblasted Acorn with American Holly (Friar) (A16) (10) Tobacco Pipe

A high-lifting Acorn (with also, I would say, a good bit of Horn), this Jody Davis briar makes good use of an Ivarsson-style teardrop shank, continuing that cross-section all the way through the bowl. Doing that of course produces a teardrop-shaped rim as well, which both both makes for a more interesting presentation of the craggy plateau and for a more natural match (a sort of echo, really) to the pronounced taper of the bowl's profile. Said profile, though mounted high as well as strongly tapered, is quite solidly anchored by the muscular transition and shank. All of that, over all, makes for a design that's organic in style yet firm and sturdy, which in turn is both complemented and contrasted well by the tight, fine pattern of the briar's grain.

- Eric N. Squires