Ashton: Sovereign Dublin with Silver (ELX) Tobacco Pipe

Though their work is known primarily for balanced works of timeless Anglo-French design, Ashton has also been known to, at times, produce some especially hearty and impressively sized pipes, pipes that can break the mold and encroach into the neoclassical realm of design. Of the designations for these pipes, the "ELX" stamping designates the largest regular-production pipes that Ashton makes, trumped only by the seldom-seen "Magnum" stamp. This Dublin earns its "ELX" stamp handily, with nearly six and a half inches in length and an impressively hearty substance in hand, its bowl holding the majority of the visual weight this pipe has to offer. A wide transition gives way to a remarkably thick shank that reaches out to meet a sleekly tapering stem of brindled green and black vulcanite: the junction marked by a broad band of silver. Up front, the bowl stands on a firm heel and flares out expressively to a broad rim, the walls possessed of a striking thickness which only serves to further bolster its presence: their two and a half inches in height ensuring it remains the center of attention. The Sovereign finish is one that Ashton reserves only for those pipes that display the finest grain the workshop has to offer, with this Dublin showcasing a wealth of birdseye across its bowl beneath the line's light stain.

-John McElheny