Smooth Shield with Horn Tobacco Pipe

Enamored with woodworking from an early age, as much of his childhood was spent in the workshop of his grandfather, Brazilian artisan Luiz Lavos' gravitation toward pipe making was inspired by his uncle, who was an avid enthusiast of pipes. His path in this regard was additionally influenced by his experience with graphic design, allowing him to create innovative and unique designs, many of which are rooted in the classic Danish tradition. This kind of Danish leaning was reinforced through his time spent with Hans "Former" Nielsen, who taught him finishing techniques and further reinforced his already palpable talent.

The Shield is one of the rarest artisan pipe shapes still consistently carved, and we've seen only a small handful of examples in the past few years from all sources. Much like the Elephant's Foot, this pipe is typified by its broad front panel and cross grain orientation, both pipes additionally being originally designed by legendary Swedish artisan Bo Nordh. The Shield, however, differs in that its fore wall features a bit more rounding and that it's defined most often not by a wrapping panel at the flanks, but a single ridgeline. Here the ridge is pushed a bit forward, shifting the balance of the visual weight here a bit and forming a firm-lined heel beneath the bowl's walls. Though the ridge offers plenty of firmness for the fingers, the rounding of its walls on either end tempers this firmness and keeps the feel in hand comfortably muscular. A wide transition gives way to an extremely trim shank that tapers, lifting out of the aft wall of the bowl to meet a lengthy, flaring extension of horn whose face is domed and inlaid with a brass ring: offering a reinforced push-mount fit for the slender saddle stem that curls out of it. The rear half of this pipe is an elegantly rendered display of fluid poise, its gracile arc to the button holding the bowl aloft with a measured, sylph-like gesture. Dressed in a vibrant chestnut contrast stain, the stummel here showcases an incredible wealth of grain here, with a vast basin of birdseye on the fore wall and a smaller pool on the aft, while the midsection is wrapped with cross grain.