Sebastian Heck Smooth Rhodesian Handmade Briar Pipe, New

Description

Sebastian Heck is part of younger generation of highly skilled artisans to have emerged from Germany in recent years. Based in Heidelberg, Heck took up pipe smoking—and, ultimately, pipe-making—as part of a conscious effort toward slowing down in an otherwise constantly accelerating modern world. Like many pipe-makers, Heck took his first steps into the craft as a restorer of estate and heirloom pieces, which in time brought with it an expansion of his workshop and the tools housed within it. With this as a base, creating new pipes of his own was a natural progression. Heck’s development has been greatly influenced by the Danish and German schools of pipe design, and has included time spent learning directly from fellow German artisans, such as Dirk Heinemann.

I’ll admit, when this one landed on my desk, for a moment I presumed that someone had traded in an unsmoked Balleby. That’s partly my fault—my memory is getting pretty terrible these days—but, on the other hand, there is definitely something to this one that’s evocative of some of the works of Balleby, and also of Rainer Barbi. The pipe is expertly shaped in the form of a broad-brimmed Rhodesian with a veritable rollercoaster of a curvature, all the while maintaining good, consistent flame grain on the bowl’s sides and bird’s-eye on its rim. The pipe’s (German) ebonite stem is an additional, highly distinct touch, with a flare that arches back to mirror the incline of the bowl, before deftly resolving into a half saddle.

Details:

Length: 5.4″ / 137.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.74 / 18.79mm

Bowl Depth: 1.5″ / 38.10mm

Weight: 2.3oz / 68g