Claudio Cavicchi: Brown Sandblasted Tuban Tobacco Pipe

Since we first had the pleasure of gracing the digital pages of our site with the works of Italian master Claudio Cavicchi in late 2008, we have seen a great many shapes and sizes pass through our hands and into yours. However, this Tuban rendition is unique even by that standard. The Tuban as a shape was conceptualized by Dirk Heinemann while experimenting with the Rhodesian profile, discovering that the shank itself could become its own self-contained shape. Cavicchi's spin on the Tuban is decidedly larger and significantly more sinuous, the abbreviated saddle stem eschewed in favor of a lengthy, bent taper festooned with a tiered disc of mahogany stained briar. Much like a Horn, this shape does away with the shank and, thus, the transition, in favor of a composite style of stummel, curving right after the stem meets its flat, hardwood-accented rear face. Unlike a Horn, however, the diameter remains consistent, neither flaring nor tapering, the tight curvature sending the cylindrical bowl forward at an angle that exudes a palpable momentum. The stummel features Cavicchi's Brown sandblast, appropriately staining the briar a warm chestnut, but, most importantly, revealing one of the most striking grain patterns I have ever seen on a sandblasted pipe. Growth rings flow along the flanks from the rim to the rear end, curving as the briar does, complimenting the composition and framing a fore which holds a superb array of birdseye that shows through the textural finish boldly.