Dunhill 2000 Shilling XL Sandblasted Freehand Estate Briar Pipe, English Estates

Description

To veteran pipe smokers, Dunhill needs no introduction. Beginning in 1907, Alfred Dunhill began selling Dunhill pipes at the tobacconist shop he owned on London’s Duke Street. Very quickly, these pipes gained the reputation of being the ‘Rolls-Royce’ of pipes due to how expertly crafted they were. Today, Dunhill is likely Britain’s most famous pipe manufacturer, and continues to produce some of the most treasured pipes a smoker can buy.

While Dunhill has long been known for their excellent sandblast finishes, it was not until 1986 that the company added a specific category to their catalog for sandblasted pipes exhibiting exceptional grain patterns. This category was the Ring Grain, a higher “grade” of sorts for Shell Briar pipes that, consequently, were sold at a premium. Some time later, this grading was also assigned to Dunhill’s Cumberland line, with the Shilling appellation used instead of Ring Grain. For those unaware, the shilling was a unit of currency in the UK until 1990, with Dunhill’s Shilling so named because it resembled a stack of such coins. Though the shilling was not exactly a small coin, this Dunhill Shilling would appear to have “outgrown” its moniker, being an extra large, freehand Dublin variant with a chamber diameter wider than the fivepence itself. Nevertheless, the crispness and the uniformity of its sandblast finish makes it more than deserving of its namesake.

The condition is very good. Some inner rim darkening, and what looks to be a very small spot of char at the back inner lip, and some minor finish fading.

 

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 1.09 / 27.68mm

Bowl Depth: 2.05″ / 52.07mm

Weight: 2.2oz / 64g