Il Duca: Sandblasted Acorn (B) Tobacco Pipe

Max Rimensi's precise shaping and distinctive finishing skills are clearly realized in this organic Acorn. The Il Duca Italian artisan is known for putting his own creative touches on classic shapes, often modernizing them in the process, as is the case with this example. The high-waisted and broad-rimmed bowl is yet softly rounded and tapers steadily to a curved heel, forgoing the shape's typical heel spur.

The carver's pipes often present design cues from various schools, with this curvaceous Acorn embodying both Danish and Italian influences. Here, the domed rim overhangs the transition with the supple shaping and soft lines continuing through the gently rising, quite gestural shank, which flares at the end. The slender, jet-black vulcanite stem reflects the shank's curvature with a similarly shaped disc at its base, all culminating in a striking, easy-flowing profile that reflects dramatic neoclassic proportions.

Dressed in the carver's instantly recognizable, contrast-stained and rustic sandblast that shows off the briar's concise grain, this alluring Acorn fits naturally and comfortably in hand and offers the exceptional smoking properties associated with Rimensi's work.