Savinelli: Churchwarden Brown Rusticated (601) Tobacco Pipe

A modestly sized bent Billiard, Savinelli's "601" is a sturdy take on the pipe chart standard, with a wide heel, high-set transition, and slightly tapering bowl. While quite muscular and visually significant in its shaping, the shank of this "601" doesn't over tighten the transition, extending at a 45 degree angle, almost to the height of the rim, for a comfortable thumb rest between shank and bowl.

While Savinelli's Qandale series offers a number of shapes in Churchwarden configuration, marked by an Old-World aesthetic, the Italian marque also presents versions of more traditional, minimalist style. The Churchwarden design hearkens back to the long, willowy, clay "tavern pipes" of yesteryear, marked by especially long stems. Myth shrouds the name's origin, with stories speculating that churchwardens smoked these longer pipes so as to keep smoke from their eyes while keeping watch over unlocked churches. Others suggest that churchwardens used the longer stems to hang pipe bowls out a window while they smoked during church services. Regardless, the elongated stem promotes a comfortable smoking posture well suited to peaceful, relaxing smoking sessions, and this particular piece wears a chocolate-stained rustication for intriguing texture in hand.