Charatan Experts Needed

[hoppes]

Didn't have a Charatan in the collection--wanted an earlier one which are hard to come by. This one was advertised as a Pre-Lane era pipe.Nice delicate pipe, very light. Measures 6 inches long but the barrel is only 1 inch across with a chamber diameter of 5/8 of an inch. Appears to be straight grain all around. Has a thin CP marking that is neither on top or the side. The only other markings are on the left side: Charatan's Make Shape number 58. Which I think

London England

Special S
Charatan calls a Newmarket. Looks to fit the characteristics of a preLane pipe. Any comments, suggestions or history would be appreciated. Thanks, Hoppes

 

[alaskanpiper]

No idea, but it's a nice looking pipe. Congrats!

 

[sablebrush52]

Why not PM Ken Barnes? He probably knows more about Charatan than anyone else on this forum.

 

[jguss]

The Newmarket was designed to be a "faithful reproduction" in briar of the classic English clay pipe. Here's a trade advertisement from March 1949 that will you more about the Newmarket (both normal and small). Although the text doesn't say that the Newmarket is a new shape, the fact that it had an advertisement to itself strongly implies that it was recently introduced by Charatan.

 

[pepesdad1]

Very nice pipe!

 

[dmcmtk]

jguss, that's good info. Ken has shown the 58 from the 1951 catalog.

 

[craig61a]

By no means an expert, but I thought the “Special” was introduced around 1950, and once Lane took up US distribution they were marked with pound symbol (£) around 1955.

 

[dmcmtk]

By no means an expert, but I thought the “Special” was introduced around 1950

It's in the 1949 ad jguss posted above.

...and once Lane took up US distribution they were marked with pound symbol (£) around 1955.

Yes, if the pipe was imported to the US, however that stamping is not synonymous of the Lane ownership era (1961).

 

[trouttimes]

If you look at pipedia.org you will find a lot of info on Charatans. I have 6 in my collection and I really enjoy them. I have been looking for a Newmarket to add to the gang. Good acquisition.

 

[kenbarnes]

Thanks jguss, I have never seen that illustration before. I do know that Reuben Charatan used to select all the straight grain blocks from the bags of briar and turn these by hand. The other blocks would be turned on a bowl-turning machine into their relative catalogue shapes. What interests me is in the 1949 description of the Charatan qualities they describe the Special as 'Cross (flame) grain'. I imagine that they may be referring to straight grain ones which did not quite make the Selected grade but which were turned by hand by Reuben or Dan Tennyson.

In the 1951 description it says that the Special grade only comes in cross grain.

 

[hoppes]

Thanks everyone for the comments and history. Does anyone know what the S marking might stand for?? Hoppes

 

[kenbarnes]

I am wondering whether this Special quality was marked 'S' because it was a straight grain as opposed to cross grain. This may be an early example of Charatan grade which is a little higher than the norm. It may have been down-graded from a Selected quality due to the small flaw on the shank near the word 'Make'. Years later, Charatan did the same thing with the Supreme quality and Supreme S. In the 1930s there was a grade called ‘Super’ which, at one time was stamped Super and then it was simply stamped ‘S’ under the Charatan nomenclature. The mouthpiece was also stamped with a single ‘S’ rather than Cp. So they had this stamp die handy!

Another way of dating an ‘earlier’ Charatan to a ‘later’ one is by the catalogue-shape number stamping. Originally, (Reuben told Barry Jones) when Charatan started to stamp shape numbers on the pipes he had individual stamp dies from 0 – 9. So, in order to stamp this Newmarket 58 he would need to stamp a 5 and then stamp an 8 next to it – as neatly as possible. These early stampings can show that the numbers have been stamped individually as one would be a bit higher/lower etc. In the late 1940s (I am not sure of the year) Reuben bought a ‘stamp die holder’ which could hold two stamp dies (or three?) at the same time in order for the shape numbers to be more in line and neater when pressed onto the shank. Then finally in the 1950s he bought a stamp die for each catalogue shape.

 

[dmcmtk]

Very interesting about the stampings Ken!

 

[hoppes]

Ken: Thanks so much for the interesting history. You are a treasure in the pipe world ! Looking at the 58 under a little magnification shows that the 8 is a wee bit higher and somewhat tilted from the 5. So this pipe looks like it might be from the late 40's, early fifties. That would jibe with what others have contributed. Interesting about the S designation though. May have even been made by Mr Charatan!! Hoppes

 

[jojoc]

It looks like to me that the top of the 8 tilts in towards the 5 a bit compared to the vertical line of the 5. Also looks like the 8 may be a hair higher than the 5. Would seem to indicate that the two numbers were stamped separately.

 

[kenbarnes]

It looks like to me that the top of the 8 tilts in towards the 5 a bit compared to the vertical line of the 5. Also looks like the 8 may be a hair higher than the 5. Would seem to indicate that the two numbers were stamped separately.

I thought so too.