Lasse Skovgaard: Smooth Billiard with Horn Stem Tobacco Pipe

Like many aspiring artisans before and after him, Lasse Skovgaard got his professional pipe-making start at the venerated W.Ø. Larsen workshop in Copenhagen, initially crafting tampers from buffalo horn before quickly advancing to carving pipes. He received tutelage from some of the best, including Teddy Knudsen and Lasse's father, Benni Jørgensen. A 2004 appearance at the Chicagoland Pipe Show made his name and work, even more popular, going on to become one of Denmark's more prominent carvers, with his work quickly snapped up once it goes on market.

An understated pipe rendered in minimalist style, this Billiard from Lasse is resplendent in Danish design. The bowl is more supple and softly rounded than its Anglo-French counterparts, for example, with an easy taper to the rim from a rounded heel, which also speaks to Danish shaping cues. It's proudly poised at the end of a seamless stretch of cylindrical shank and elegantly tapered stem, the latter constituting genuine horn. The artisan has finished the stummel in a smooth, rich contrast stain, highlighting stunning birdseye and cross-grain patterns. This is a fine interpretation of the shape chart standard by a talented, well-respected carver.