Thanks for the amazing comments. I feel pretty lucky and humbled by my find. I passed a pipe cleaner with a bit of 151 through the stem and there is nary a fleck of brown. If this was smoked, it was maybe once. I'm excited to take this for a spin. Now to choose a tobacco to break it in.
Now, I know this is a special find but it does bring to mind that some of the allure of pipe smoking is the search (at least for me), whether it is a search for pipes or tobacco. I have been lucky in finding deals for my estate pipes.
The history behind these style of pipes is cool. I love that it is from a past date. I would love to know how it came to that vendor but probably will have to wait for a later date to inquire.
@mso The antique store was about 2 hours away on the way to nothing but lakes. I would have/should have left a card. I did check back every day that I was vacationing but nothing more was found. That vendor did have some other pipes that were quite worn and of not so great quality. I will for sure be stopping in if I am anywhere near there.
Now, I know this is a special find but it does bring to mind that some of the allure of pipe smoking is the search (at least for me), whether it is a search for pipes or tobacco. I have been lucky in finding deals for my estate pipes.
The history behind these style of pipes is cool. I love that it is from a past date. I would love to know how it came to that vendor but probably will have to wait for a later date to inquire.
@mso The antique store was about 2 hours away on the way to nothing but lakes. I would have/should have left a card. I did check back every day that I was vacationing but nothing more was found. That vendor did have some other pipes that were quite worn and of not so great quality. I will for sure be stopping in if I am anywhere near there.