Smooth Natural Freehand (Bishop) (A22) (56) Tobacco Pipe

American artisan Jody Davis has carved fine pipes for decades, cultivating a Danish-inflected style that helped popularize the shapes and features of that school in the contemporary American briar vernacular. This example is among his rarest pieces, bearing his esteemed Bishop grade. A unique Freehand, this pipe features a distinctive, organic design, with a supple, rounded bowl capped with an asymmetric, beveled rim at the fore of robust round shank. Said shank displays a semi-paneled nature, with a firm ridgeline that extends past the shank, creating a crisp, defined transition at the left flank that helps the pipe fit ergonomically in the hand. The bowl is also punctuated by a raised patch of plateau at its right flank, creating a playful spot of texture that serves to balance visual weight, as well as provide another hand-friendly feature. Out back, a hand-cut vulcanite saddle stem offers an effortless clench. The stummel is dressed in a rich natural finish, revealing some truly exquisite birdseye around the bowl and finely oriented, tight cross grain at the rim and through the shank, making this excellent pipe a collector's favorite.