Smooth Volcano with Cocobolo Tobacco Pipe

Pete Prevost's foray into smoking pipes began at 18-years-old with a corn cob pipe and a pouch of drugstore tobacco. Prevost spent much of his life as a touring musician, and during this time he began to experiment with crafting pipes from kits. Soon after, he met another pipe maker with a musical background, Jody Davis, who later introduced him to another famous American carver, Todd Johnson. Prevost and Johnson would go on to found the pipe-making workshop BriarWorks in 2013, where Prevost currently serves as president. However, Prevost still finds the time to craft quite a few handmade pipes every year in his signature style, which is typified by compact, muscular shapes that showcase shapely contours and pristine line work.

It has been several years since we have seen a Volcano from Pete Prevost, and it marks a departure from his usual style. Although this pipe retains Prevost's signature muscular aesthetic, the dramatic profile contrasts with the streamlined pipes he typically produces. For example, the fore presents a striking convex arc between the crisp ridgelines at the trim rim and the defined underside, and a sharp heel speckled with plateau protrudes below the transition, which makes this pipe a stable Sitter. These elements serve to accentuate the bowl's shaping, giving it a sharp, cohesive look that contrasts the demure curvature of the shank-and-stem arrangement. Furthermore, the shaping also serves to accentuate a stunning grain pattern.

The stummel is dressed in vibrant auburn stain that highlights thick strands of flame grain that arc up the bowl, paralleling the arcing shape of the fore. Furthermore, the broad, curved underside showcases spectacular birdseye that ranges from minuscule pinpricks to swirling whorls, with a flourish of plateau poking through the pattern. Out back, the flame grain and birdseye sweep upward along the thick, cylindrical shank, which is adorned with a cocobolo accent band that features contrasting light and dark hues, much like the grain on the bowl. The composition is topped off with a cumberland saddle stem, providing a cool-hued companion to the composition's vivid colors. Overall, this seldom seen Volcano from Pete Prevost is alluring in both shape and finish, making this piece a standout among his exemplary portfolio.