Dunhill: Ruby Bark (5103) (2022) Tobacco Pipe

Offered in robust Group 5 dimensions, this "03" straight Billiard from Dunhill is one of the most iconic shapes on the classic pipe chart, and fittingly rendered here by The White Spot — the English marque having both mastered the shape and been instrumental in proliferating it around the world. The bowl is tall and capaciously chambered, standing proudly atop a firmly rounded heel and displaying a subtle forward cant which pushes it into further prominence. Dressed here in the crimson sandblast of the Ruby Bark finish, the stummel here showcases handsome grain, with elegant contrast offered by a band of silver at the junction.

Dunhill's Ruby Bark finish is one that's gone through a fairly extensive evolution since its inception in 1972. It began as the Redbark and has always remained a red-stained sandblast, but the color was brightened a few years after its introduction before Dunhill returned to the original, darker hue in 1976. Eventually, though, the Redbark was discontinued in 1987. After a hiatus of several decades, the same ruby-stained sandblast was reimagined in the form of today's Ruby Bark finish, adding to the rich aesthetic crisp accents of sterling silver for a colorful presentation that still retains a high level of formality.