1948 Comoy’s Olympic Sandblasted Freehand Estate Briar Pipe, English Estates

Description

Comoy’s is a historic brand in pipe making, and possibly the most historic brand in the making of briar pipes. Though originally founded in 1825 by a French family from Saint Claude, France, production of Comoy’s pipes was soon moved to London, England, where it established itself as one of the quintessential English pipe companies.

I’ll admit, this pipe caught me by surprise. When I first saw it I thought, “Hmm, that’s an odd Comoy’s. I wonder if it was made as a response to the Danish freehand craze in the 1960s and ’70s?” You can imagine my shock when I was told that the pipe was more likely from the late 1940s. The clue is in the name: “Olympic.” As a Brit told me, in 1948, London hosted the Olympic Games. In fact, he proudly told me that London has hosted the Olympics three times (1908, 1948, and 2012), more than any other city in history. When I asked him how many medals they won, that pride mysteriously disappeared.

Back to the pipe: it is genuinely extraordinary to see a freehand from all the way back in 1948, not least from an English make. It even has a plateau rim!

The condition is remarkable, too. There’s some inner rim darkening, but nothing major. Seems as though its last owner knew exactly what they had.

 

Details:

Length: 6″ / 152.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.95 / 24.13mm

Bowl Depth: 1.89″ / 48.00mm

Weight: 3.4oz / 98g