English Estates: Dunhill Ruby Bark Quaint Dublin (3) (2017) Tobacco Pipe

Comprising pipes that depart from the English marque's shape chart, Dunhill's Quaint line is well represented here by this sleek Dublin. Rendered in svelte Group 2 size, a thumb-sized bowl stands pertly at the end of a slim oval shank with a forward cant that lends the composition a sense of dynamism. The shank is adorned with a silver band at its junction with a tapered vulcanite stem that allows this light pipe to hang easily from the jaw. Dressed in Dunhill's Ruby Bark sandblast, this piece is an elegant yet rugged interpretation of the classic shape, sure to please fans of English style.

Dunhill's Ruby Bark finish is one that's gone through a fairly extensive evolution since its inception in 1972. It began as the Redbark and has always remained a red-stained sandblast, but the color was brightened a few years after its introduction before Dunhill returned to the original, darker hue in 1976. Eventually, though, the Redbark was discontinued in 1987. After a hiatus of several decades, the same ruby-stained sandblast was re-imagined in the form of today's Ruby Bark finish, adding to the rich aesthetic crisp accents of sterling silver for a colorful presentation that still retains a high level of formality.