Tom Spanu 2000 Millennio Smooth Pot w/ Boxwood Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

After arriving in Varese, Italy, with the intention of becoming a pipe-maker, Tommaso Spanu was taken under the wing of Alberto Paronelli, one of the first modern-Italian master carvers. From here, Tom Spanu was charged with creating the high-grade Clairmont make owned and distributed by Paronelli. He then went on to create pipes under his own name, becoming one of Italy’s most renowned and respected artisans. After crafting pipes for over 50 years, Tommaso Spanu passed away in 2015.

Rather than indicating a pipe made for the year 2000 (as I once mistakenly believed), the Millennio was, rather, Tommaso Spanu’s highest grade—it just so happened that a number of them were made in 2000, like this one. Having seen several Millennio grades from the 2000s, it could not be more evident just how much of a master Spanu had become over the previous three decades of his career. Not only is the straight grain on this one extraordinary, but it also shows’s off Spanu’s signature talents in incorporating exotic wood accents into his designs. In this instance, I would guess that the pipe’s cap and split stem have been fashioned from boxwood, though lemon wood is another possibility, given Spanu’s preference for using native flora in his work. Whatever it is, it looks fantastic.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, with an original bowl coating. It also comes with its original box and sleeve.

 

Details:

Length: 6″ / 152.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.89 / 22.60mm

Bowl Depth: 1.6″ / 40.64mm

Weight: 2.1oz / 60g