Danish Estates: Former Freehand Smooth Horn with Masur Birch (Unsmoked) Tobacco Pipe

Hans "Former" Nielsen is a venerated legend in the world of pipe making, having been hard at work at his craft for over 60 years. The Danish artisan began learning beside other legends such as Sven Knudsen and Poul Rasmussen. He eventually moved on to work at W.Ø. Larsen, honing his skills and supervising other talented carvers, before striking out to make pipes that bear his own name. His style is marked by the supple curvature and soft lines that mark a great many of the pipes that come out of the Danish school of design. All of those features are easily observable in this bent Horn.

A fluid, dynamic composition, this piece boasts a steady curvature and an easy taper from its flared rim to its shank end's alluring masur birch accent. The aforementioned taper and curvature inform one another, with the former accentuating the latter and fostering a visually active yet cohesive profile. Subtle paneling across the length of the stummel further emphasizes the shape's elegant bend, while adding a touch of structure to the piece. Likewise, a broad swathe of plateau along the stummel's underside provides a rich, organic texture to the design. Dressed in an auburn smooth finish, the stummel offers a gorgeous display of grain on all sides of the briar.