Ardor: Venere Bent Billiard Tobacco Pipe

A rather special rendition of the bent Billiard from Italian workshop Ardor, this pipe is a member of their seldom-seen Venere series, comprising pipes with excellent shaping and grain. The stem here is a demurely curved saddle of stylish grey and black acrylic whose base takes on a dynamic rearward slant. It's been paired to a gently flaring, smartly upturned shank that ebbs out of a wide transition which leaves plenty of room to drape a thumb. Up front, the bowl takes on an active forward cant that's balanced by the stem base's slant in the opposite direction, its walls sitting atop a sweeping heel and taking on a gentle taper to the rim from a low-set waistline. This bowl additionally features plenty of plump curvature about its build which lends it a comfortable feel in hand, its compressed flanks affording it a svelte footprint and lending it a light weight. The Venere finish that dresses this piece coats the stummel in a glossy, natural stain that unveils dense streaks of flame grain on the right flank, with the fiery grain growing into birdseye on the left.