Tom Eltang: Rusticated Poker with Bamboo Tobacco Pipe

Tom Eltang knew when he was a child that he wanted to be a pipe maker. At age 16, he apprenticed to Anne Julie, and his pipe-making career began. After working with Julie for three years, he moved on to the Pipe Dan workshop and later to Stanwell. Then Eltang set out on his own in 1980, and he has crafted pipes under his name ever since. Based in a workshop in Copenhagen, Eltang produces nearly any shape one can think of and utilizes myriad finishes. Although Eltang's catalog of pipes is vast, they are all united by his classic Danish style.

Although Tom Eltang is closely associated with a number of pipe shapes, such as the iconic Eskimo, there are none more recognizable as his work than his signature renditions of the Poker. This Poker features a slender, towering bowl, which rises from a flattened underside to a gently inflated rim, both of which are dressed in a striking chestnut smooth finish. In contrast, the bowl's walls are dressed in Eltang's archetypal rustication, showcasing deep, concentric flutes on the fore and aft, whereas the flanks display a more rugged and organic texture. Out back, Eltang includes another element he frequently utilizes on his Pokers: a bamboo shank extension, which offers a splash of blonde color and a subtle, rustic tactility. An abbreviated saddle stem crafted from jet-black vulcanite rounds out the form, creating a composition that any pipe aficionado will instantly recognize as the work of Tom Eltang.