Dunhill Shell Briar 3205 w/ Galalith stem, Dublin 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.

No, your eyes do not deceive you. That is indeed a Dunhill with a white stem. And no, it is not a replacement stem, either. In a situation not unlike Peterson with their modern Amber Spigot series, a few decades back, Dunhill discovered old stock of a material that was once explored as an alternative to vulcanite: Erinoid, also known as Galalith. While some of the earliest Dunhill pipes featured ivory stems, Dunhill, like many pipe-makers in the early- to -mid 20th century experimented with alternative synthetic materials to use on their pipes. While some pipe-makers used similar materials, such as Bakelite or Redmanol, Dunhill appears to have considered cream-colored Erinoid as an ivory substitute. Half a century later Dunhill’s craftsmen unearthed small quantities of this material and were able to cut a very small number of stems from it. I’ve only ever seen two examples of these pipes before (one being on Pipedia where their provenance is briefly discussed), and I’ve never had a chance to see one in person – until now.

The condition is excellent. There’s a little, inner rim darkening, some very light chatter on the end of the stem, but the overall condition is remarkable.

 

Details:

Length: 5.8″ / 147.3mm

Bowl Width: 0.84 / 21.33mm

Bowl Depth: 1.56″ / 39.62mm

Weight: 0.9oz / 28g