Churchwarden Rusticated (D6) Fishtail Tobacco Pipe

We often discuss Peterson's signature aesthetic as being muscular and robust, with more visual weight placed on the shank and transition than, even, English-styled pipes. It's this design cue that most readily defines what's come to be known as the Irish style of pipemaking. Peterson's "D" shapes, however, take a different approach. Originally produced for the Irish marque's Danish distributor, Larsen and Peterson, around 1996, the "D" line focuses on traditional Danish shaping, creating shapes that are more slender and elegantly curved than the hearty Irish style of Peterson's other pieces. Said Danish style is epitomized here in the "D6" — a form free of hard lines and whose curling profile tows the line between Horn and bent Dublin. It's one of Peterson's most softly sinuous shapes, found here in long Churchwarden form.

Peterson first introduced Churchwarden pipes in 1945, the long, willowy profiles inherently forgoing the muscular aesthetic that has come to define the Irish marque's approach to pipe design. Such length is much more suited to extended, relaxing smoking sessions, however, the stem allowing for minimal movement while smoking in an armchair. It's for this reason that Churchwardens are often preferred while reading, the Germans going so far as to translate "Churchwarden" as Lesepfeife, which literally means "reading pipe." Slender and lightweight, Peterson's Churchwardens may not be convenient pocket pipes, but they more than make up for it in the comfortable smoking posture they promote — with this particular one commended by a delightful, chocolate-stained rustication and flashy nickel.

Note: While most of our other pipes are photographed individually, these are not, and you may expect some reasonable cosmetic variation between the example we've photographed and the pipe you've received.