Tom Eltang Smooth Billiard w/ Mammoth Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

In the world of pipes, Tom Eltang needs no introduction. I will, however, give one anyway, if just as a reminder. Eltang made his first pipe from a Pipe-Dan hobby kit at the age of 11. At age 16, he apprenticed under the legendary Anne Julie, before moving on to work for Pipe-Dan three years later. Three years after that, Eltang began working for Stanwell. Through these formative experiences with major Danish pipe-making institutions, Eltang cultivated the skills and creativity that would see him emerge as one of the figureheads of Danish artisan pipe-making scene. In terms of influence, it is perhaps only Sixten Ivarsson who has had a comparable impact on the world of hand made pipes.

“Danish” pipe making as we know it began as a reaction to the pipe making found in England and France. But it did not begin as a reaction against the pipe making of England and France. Rather, Danish pipe makers following the Second World War were quite enamored with “traditional” pipes (Poul Stanwell, né Nielsen, even established his first trademarks in a style meant to evoke England, with the first “Stanwell” stamp being suspiciously similar to that of Sasieni). The first “Danish” pipes are, then, better considered as a continuation or, better, an evolution of the Anglo-French style, rooted in elegance and simplicity. Of course, as the years went by, Danish pipe making took on a more avant-garde bent, but even its godfather, Sixten Ivarsson, returned time and time again to designs that would not look out of place in a Dunhill or Comoy’s catalog. After decades of an increasingly global fascination with novelty and extravagance, Tom Eltang spearheaded a revival of the early Danish neo-traditionalism, citing the functionalist philosophy of the architect Arne Jacobsen as a key influence. Granted, Eltang has created plenty of bold and highly unorthodox shapes of his own, his commitment to making pipes that smoke well rather than simply look impressive has remained constant and explicit. On the other hand, and as this pipe demonstrates, such properties are far from mutually exclusive in the right hands. Sleek and lightweight, laden with tight, straight grain and accented with stabilized mammoth bone—form may follow function but, with Eltang at least, it certainly doesn’t lag behind.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, with an original bowl coating.

 

Details:

Length: 6″ / 152.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.77 / 19.55mm

Bowl Depth: 1.48″ / 37.59mm

Weight: 1.1oz / 32g