Cased Early Patent 1892 Meerschaum Pipe.

Cased Early Kapp & Peterson Patent 1892 Meerschaum Pipe.

This very early Meerschaum in the standard distinctive Peterson bent shape, was created  around 1891/2 the time when the Kapp brothers and Charles Peterson first patented and began marketing the unique classic system that remains as popular today.

 

 Note that this outstanding specimen is distinctly stamped with the patent number on both the bowl shank and the silver ferrule and that the silver identifies both PETERSON and the parent company Kapp Brothers (stamped KAPP BRO).

 

Oddly, the bowl has a small, perfectly round hole drilled deliberately through the bottom of the tobacco chamber. Occasionally seen, these are sometimes done by pipe owners, to create a "carburettor" effect, and of course several pipe makers used to make "carburettor" pipes.

 

 The case is in excellent condition inside and out (though not labelled).

This special pipe is now one of two, handsome,richly coloured and historically important of the earlier Kapp & Peterson pipes which I am now privileged to have in my collection.

 

Small can be beautiful and functional!

Small can be beautiful and functional!

Regular blog followers will have noted that one of the main reasons that I enjoy Petersons pipes, is the sheer variety of shapes of pipes which they have produced over the years.

In the early Patent years(1890-1920) it was fashionable to produce very small practical pipes, for everyday use. These pipes were, in my opinion targeted at the main working populace.They were made so that  they could slip easily into the fashionable vest pockets of most pipe smokers of that time.
I already had a couple of these interesting little pipes and have just added another to my collection. An early P-lip, Patent 1910 (2) grade bent Army mount.

 It measures just over 4 inches long,with a bowl height of 1 and 3/8th inches.
Unlike modern vest pocket pipes these early patents were very traditional in shape.



My three small vest pipes can be seen in direct comparison to an average size 999 shape Peterson pipe, giving a good illustration of their size and scale.

Satisfying the collector's lust for possession!

Satisfying the collector's lust for possession!

Early last year Gary Malmberg,the President of the Sacramento pipe club gave a talk to the members of the Golden Gate Pipe club. He brought along several significant old Pete's from his extensive collection. One of these was a really interesting one, a large 1912 Meerschaum figural Mastiff Dog carving. From the photos, I reckoned that the pipe was, in all probability one of the finest Peterson Meerschaum carvings that I had ever seen. As a collector of Peterson's my lust was unleashed!

Over the last few months I have purchased several older Pete's from Gary's wonderful collection.

I made it known to him that I was very interested in the Meerschaum Mastiff Dog figural pipe which he had shown earlier in the year and asked if he would consider a mutually beneficial exchange to allow me to acquire this outstanding pipe. Well I am very pleased to say that I am now the proud custodian of this quite exceptional and historically significant pipe.

Just arrived, I am proud to introduce the latest addition to The Sandpiper Peterson Museum collection!

Thank you Gary.

Something Unique.

One of the joys I get from collecting Peterson pipes is the sheer variety of shapes and models that they have issued over the years.
Regardless of having a huge collection of them ,I am always finding pipes that I have never seen before.
Such pipes in the main tend to be from the older series of pre-republic or Patents.However now and again up pops a complete surprise from the modern era.

I was recently contacted by fellow Pete enthusiast Adam Rusan from Sydney,Australia. Adam asked for my opinion on a pipe which he had recently acquired/purchased from a well known Sydney Peterson distributor,Sol Levy.
It was a beautiful natural coloured XL339 Silver Spigot,with a most unusual Cumberland stem.The stem being in the style of the older 'system' pipes.

Adam had very little information to go on the pipe and had failed to source any reference to such a shape and model. I explained to him that the shape is no longer being issued by Peterson and that I suspected that the pipe was a NOS pipe,ie. new old stock.Probably held within the shop for several years.I drew attention to the unique stem shape and finish and speculated that this particular pipe was probably a one-off special piece for retail exhibition.I have several such pipes in my own collection,although non as distinctive as this one.
I thought that the Blog followers would like to see it and asked Adam for permission to post a copy of one of his photo's.Thank you Adam.I am envious!

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes -'Hopkins' Shape.

The  Adventures of Sherlock Holmes -'Hopkins' Shape.

Here we have another of my favourite shapes from the four pipe 'Adventures of Sherlock Holmes' collection. This time in the of the unmistakeable quirky dark, P-lip 'Hopkins'.
The shape is a rather artful take on the standard Cherrywood sitter.It has a long deep poker style chamber with an unusual graceful shaped stem.Like it's stable-mates, it is well finished and constructed.I would not recommend this one to those who like 'delicate' smoking vessels!! It is not a pipe for the faint-hearted ,it is quite chunky and weighty.
The P-lip allowed for my personal style of clenching,but I would not consider it suitable for long term dangling,because of the weight and shape.However as I have weird tastes in Peterson pipes,I like em big! I am thoroughly enjoying them.
Another worthy addition to my regular rotation pipes.
Photos below show the new Dark and a comparison shot with the 'Red' fishtail.

 

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes -'Gregson' Shape.

The  Adventures of Sherlock Holmes -'Gregson' Shape.

When Peterson first issued the new Adventures of Sherlock Holmes series,I have to admit I was not immediately impressed with the choices and the selection of shapes of the four pipe set presented.
However as a passionate collector, I just had to have a set to keep my collection updated!!

On receiving the pipes and examining them more closely,my opinion started to change.The first thing that was obvious to me was the quality of workmanship and finish,I had previously considered the quality of finish of most of the briar Sherlock Holmes series, to be of only average quality.Peterson have certainly improved their quality control with these new additional pipes.

There was one shape in particular that called to me and my personal smoking idiosyncratic needs.That was the 'Gregson'. As most Blog followers know I am a dyed in the wool clencher and dangler!and have a particular preference for large bent Petes.The set I originally purchased were all fishtail stems and I was curious to see how they would compare to a P-lip version.So for the sake of scientific research (lol) I purchased some more.
The P-lip version of the 'Gregson' suits me just dandy! it nestles beautifully to the contours of my 'special' physiognomy and beard (lol).However there is one minor disadvantage, in my opinion the fishtail has a marginally better draw.

Below are some comparison photos showing 1. the new Dark stained version with P-lip,2. & 3. are a side by side comparison with the 'Red' fishtail version and the 2008 POY which in my opinion is very similar in shape and has similar great smoking qualities.

Happy Start To The New Year!

Happy start to the New Year!

I thought I would kick-start my new year and purchase something special in the B5 shape and sandblast finish.

Surfing through the world wide web, I came across the shape and finish in the marvellous Silver-cap livery.A real beauty!

B5 Silver-cap Sandblast.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!