Werner Mummert: Smooth Oak Guppy Tobacco Pipe

An unusual little shape, Werner Mummert's Guppy evokes the appearance of its namesake's wide tail fin through a bowl that is tall and well-rounded, though thinner at its cross-section in hand. Rather than the traditional transition and shank arrangement, it tapers steadily toward the rear, coming to a small point, at which the push-style tenon attaches. The result is a shape as smooth as it is soft, and markedly different from the structured, architectural style we so often associate with Mummert's work, which consists of precise, crisp lines and vibrant finishes. Even in its difference, however, it is representative of the unique, creative style Mummert has always displayed, preferring to push the boundaries of many of pipemaking's classics, creating new and unusual designs.