Ed Burak Connoisseur Magnum Smooth Oom Paul Estate Briar Pipe, American Estates

Description

Known as the “dean of American pipe designers” Ed Burak was not a pipe-maker per se. Rather, Burak was someone who worked with the master carvers of his time to bring his distinct ideas of what a pipe could be to life. As the owner of the Connoisseur Pipe Shop, Burak designed freehand pipes so singularly representative of pipe-making as an artistic endeavor, that many of the resulting works ended up in New York’s Museum of Modern Art.

As I mentioned in a previous listing regarding a Connoisseur LC bent billiard, there are some shapes that might strike as relatively conservative in comparison to some of Burak’s other designs. Yet the Oom Paul, no less than the LC, is a shape so befitting of an artist like Burak that it’s right at home within his portfolio. With its tall bowl, equally tall stem, and rollercoaster curvature, it’s easy to imagine Burak inventing it himself, had it not already existed for decades before this one was made. Doubly so, for a magnum rendition like this one. As with all of Burak’s designs, he must have commissioned a genuine master to carve this one, as the grain is remarkable for such a big bowl, and the transition from bowl to shank is executed flawlessly.

The condition is very good. A couple of minor nicks on the rim and a few small scratches on the bowl.

 

Details:

Length: 6.6″ / 167.6mm

Bowl Width: 0.82 / 20.82mm

Bowl Depth: 2.31″ / 58.67mm

Weight: 2.6oz / 76g