Smooth Freehand Jatobá Tobacco Pipe

Brazilian artisan Gustavo Cunha founded his brand, marTelo, in 2014, and he is known for carving a diverse range of pipes, from timeless silhouettes to one-of-a-kind Freehands. The Jatobá is one of Cunha's signature shapes, inspired by the fruit pods of the jatobá tree native to Brazil. The shape is both a fitting homage to his homeland and an impressive, inventive design, with this particular iteration featuring a slightly more stout bowl and a more gestural, steadily flowing profile than renditions we've seen from the artisan in the past.

The bow perches at the fore of the upturned shank with a subtle forward cant, and boasts a highly dynamic appearance thanks to its asymmetrical lenticular shaping. A pronounced ridgeline bisects the aft wall, while the fore of the rim lifts up ever so slightly in an extremely subtle point. The chamber is positioned closer to the fore wall than the aft, and elegant chamfering makes for easy and efficient loading of tobacco. Out back, the shank is gracefully upturned, thick and ovoid and demonstrating a steady, eye-catching flair as it approaches the stem. Said stem features a push-style tenon and is decorated with a reserved, crisply rendered expansion ring for an elegant flourish. Gorgeous grain abounds throughout the stummel, and it's accentuated by a smooth, contrast-rich finish in a deep walnut hue, and further commended by a brassy inlay along the shank face.