Ser Jacopo Smooth Bent Billiard with Silver (L1) (Unsmoked) Tobacco Pipe

Ser Jacopo's story began in 1982 when Giancarlo Guidi and Bruto Sordini left Mastro de Paja to start their own firm. In the spirit of the Pesaro school of pipe making that it helped found, the company takes traditional English and French shapes and recreates them in fanciful ways, taking an ornate, independent approach to the craft. Sordini left the company in the late 1980s to strike out on his own, but Guidi continued turning pipes at Ser Jacopo until he passed away in 2012 at the age of 64. Though without its founder, the company lives on, carrying on the traditions of the Pesaro school to this day.

This bent Billiard takes on proportions akin to an Oom Paul with a sharply bent shank and wide saddle stem, winding into an oblique "S" shape from heel to bit. The muscular walls taper lightly from the shank to give the bowl a slight forward cant, leading up to a rim adorned with handsome birdseye that descends to pattern much of the front of the bowl. Lovely flame grain decorates the rest of the stummel, reaching up in closely-packed tendrils toward the rim and a thick silver band marking the end of the stummel. The marvelously round heel flows seamlessly into the walls and gives the bowl a plump but gentle touch for long periods in the hand.