Il Cerchio: Smooth Apple with Bamboo Tobacco Pipe

Il Cerchio pipes are handmade by Angelo del Prete in Pordenone, Italy. Translating to "The Circle" from Italian, the name Il Cerchio references the concepts of balance and consistency that del Prete prioritizes in each of his designs — elevated by his premium craftsmanship and creative aesthetic eye. With a degree in furniture design and decoration and the owner of a tobacco shop, del Prete boasts a longstanding passion for both woodworking and pipes and tobacco, a passion he now leverages as one of Italy's most established artisan carvers. Having received early training from fellow carvers Maximiliano Rimensi of Il Duca and Davide Iafisco, del Prete crafts innovative and reliable pipes, offering distinctive aesthetics alongside meticulous engineering.

An excellent example of Il Cerchio's faculty with classic shapes, this Apple reimagines the iconic shape-chart standard with slight modern variations. Bamboo isn't a new material in pipe making, but this darker variety was rarely, if ever, seen on similar pipes from the mid-20th century. Moreover, the hand-cut vulcanite stem displays a deep, dark mauve tone, contrasting ever so slightly against the bamboo while still matching its dark characteristics. Such a unique stem color is vaguely reminiscent of oxidized vulcanite, lending this piece a vintage quality — as if it were discovered in some decades-old collection. Lastly, del Prete's sense of proportion is on impressive display, with the bowl well balanced by the slender shank and the shorter stem, and the briar's cross grain and birdseye are handsomely highlighted by the traditional chestnut stain.