Castello Flame Bent Dublin (09.20) (2002) Tobacco Pipe

One of Castello's most limited production lines, the Flame series sees only a handful of pieces produced each year. As the name suggests, these pipes are decorated in a carved finish of striking flames, with every piece fashioned from the highest quality briar. For a number of years, the same artisan in Castello's workshop was responsible for the Flame line, and this vintage example is from period. Rendered in a more broad-sweeping, relief style — the flames share much of the composition, separating once they come to the mid-set waist, creating licking points of flame.

This particular bent Dublin is stamped "09.20," denoting that only 20 total pieces were fashioned for this run of the Flame series, of which this is number nine. The sleek, blazing motif adorns the lower bowl, and from out of the inferno rises a flaring bowl, the rim studded in specks of birdseye, while a thin black accent adorns the stem base and complements the overall palette.