19th c. CPF Best Make Bulldog w/ Silver Antique Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

The Colossus Pipe Factory, known by its initials C.P.F., is a make that is – as of yet – still a little shrouded in mystery. What is known is that the make was established in 1851 and that it was owned by Kaufman Bros & Bondy (later of Kaywoodie fame) by at least 1898. It is also understood that the make disappeared, and was therefore likely discontinued, at some point between the mid- to late-1910s, with the exact year still under debate.

Unraveling the history of these CPF pipes we’ve had in recently has been a blast. As I mentioned in a previous listing, I was able to find out – thanks to a small, ancient piece of paper tucked into one of the CPF pipes’ bowls – that the make was founded in 1851. This, coupled with the more extensive work done by Steve Laug and his interlocutors on the Reborn Pipes blog, allowed me to narrow down a relatively specific period in time when these pipes were made, starting 1851 and ending at some point between 1884 and 1898. After the 1884-1898 window, Kaufman Bros & Bondy absorbed CPF and the KBB emblem was added to CPF pipes, which neither this nor those previous ones show any trace of. So, like those few others, this is a guaranteed 19th century pipe, with an amber stem, a bone tenon, and (what I presume to be plated) silver and gold mountings on its rim and shank.

The pipe is also completely unsmoked. There’s a couple of hairline fissures in the pipe’s amber stem and one worn out fill, but nothing major.

Details:

Length: 5.6″ / 142.2mm

Bowl Width: 0.78 / 19.81mm

Bowl Depth: 1.46″ / 37.08mm

Weight: 1.2oz / 36g