1969 Dunhill Shell ODA 835 Large Billiard 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.

This particular Dunhill belongs to the rare, “OD” series. As historian John Loring recounts, post-war OD designs were either distinct in shape or in size from Dunhill’s standard offerings. This 837, for example, was what Dunhill referred to as a “semi-giant” – not quite a magnum, but certainly much larger than any of Dunhill’s standard production. The sandblasting, as with many pipes from this era, is crisp and craggy, a look and feel which is only heightened by the pipe’s greater stature.

The condition is good. Some rim darkening and finish fading. As a side note, this pipe looks to have been stamped with two different, one-digit date codes This is not unheard of and typically means that, in this instance, the pipe was made in 1969 and, for one reason or another, was not sold until 1970.

 

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.87 / 22.09mm

Bowl Depth: 1.77″ / 44.95mm

Weight: 2.0oz / 58g