Peter Matzhold 4E Smooth Brandy Estate Briar Pipe, Austrian Estates

Description

It would not be unreasonable to say that Peter Matzhold is one of Austria’s foremost living pipe-maker—if not the foremost living pipe-maker from Austria. Nor would it be to say that he is one of the foremost living pipe-makers in the entire German-speaking region of Europe, rivaled only by other masters such as Wolfgang Becker. Originally trained and employed as an architect, Matzhold began his full-time career as a pipe-maker in 1978. He achieved considerable success in the latter and now has over four decades’ worth of experience in the craft—something plainly evident from the quality of his work.

There is a recurring motif within Peter Matzhold’s portfolio which could be described as a meeting of the brandy and the volcano shapes. Sometimes the result is closer to a volcano and at other times it is closer to a brandy, but in either case the line between the former’s conical figure and the latter’s ballooning figure is blurred. It sounds so simple to put it in such terms, yet the ways Matzhold manages to pull it off are so well executed and so distinct that the pipes are both fascinating to look at and instantly recognizable as his. As far as looking good goes, it certainly doesn’t hurt that Matzhold is a master when it comes to bending grain patterns to his whim—as with the straight grain on this one—but I’ve always wondered if his peculiar, yet highly enjoyable, approach to design is in part a consequence of his architectural training, and perhaps one or two tricks of that trade.

The condition is very good. Minor darkening and wear to the rim, very slight handling marks.

 

Details:

Length: 5.6″ / 142.2mm

Bowl Width: 0.78 / 19.81mm

Bowl Depth: 1.55″ / 39.37mm

Weight: 1.8oz / 52g