Danish Estates: Peter Heeschen Sandblasted Nautilus (Unstamped) Tobacco Pipe

Danish artisan Peter Heeschen carved pipes for most of his life, his works comprising both signature shapes and timeless iterations of classic shapes that he carved until his death in 2015. Pioneered by Swedish artisan Bo Nordh, the Nautilus shape takes inspiration from nature, evoking the form of its namesake snail through its stummel: with the shank comprising a short, tapering length of briar that usually curls upward and joins to the bowl. Here, Heeschen has rendered the shape in classic fashion, displaying all the shape's iconic features, with a pair of ridges lining the flanks of the shank and separating from the point that rejoins the stummel at the transition. From here, the ridges flow across the lower edges of the shank, tracing its curl and gradually leading the eye around the aft and toward the fore, where the ridges dissipate as they rise into the walls. These ridges denote an area of slightly hollowed briar at the top side of the stummel, while the underside is subtly domed, naturally extending into the fore wall of the bowl. The bowl itself flares out to a broad, deeply sloped rim that's raised at the fore and aft and dipped in the middle, with the aft edge overlooking the hollowed section of stummel at the transition and the shank's bridge-like point. A slender saddle stem of black vulcanite joins to the shank at an inlaid band of metal that forms a sturdy push-mount, its arcing reach poising the pipe for comfortable smoking. Dressed in an earthy sandblast, the stummel showcases handsome grain throughout, with rippling bands of grain flowing across the flanks.