Danish Estates: Jorgen Larsen Smooth Freehand (F) Tobacco Pipe

Besides being a technical adviser for Kirswill and Stanwell, Jørgen Larsen was also the sole carver of Peter Stokkebye's pipes, before developing a dust allergy and having to retire from pipe making all together. Larsen left behind an impressive portfolio of shapes after his retirement, and this Freehand showcases the Danish carver's affinity for dynamic designs rife with creativity. The bowl here immediately evokes the Cobra shape, what with its protruding fore, wrapping ridgelines, and rearward-slopping rim. It rises upward and forward from a flat, sure-sitting heel and exudes an active posture that immediately captures the eye. The shank kicks high away from the bowl and marries a steeply curved saddle stem of jet-black vulcanite, its downturn promoting a comfortable smoking posture. A warm, traditional smooth finish dresses the stummel and highlights fine tendrils of flame grain along the bowl's flanks as they rise toward a rim populated with whorls of birdseye.