History of Pipe Shapes?

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fearsclave

Starting to Get Obsessed
Mar 9, 2014
209
0
A few days ago, I started wondering about the history of the present-day array of pipe shapes. There seems to be some literature our there; clays, for example have been the subject of a lot of archaeological study. And some shapes are recent enough that we know their origins. Princes and Oom Pauls are the classic example of these, although I have to wonder whether the Oom Paul had been around longer, and just got nicknamed after Paul Kruger.
But the thing is, somewhere between the briar's arrival on the scene and the plethora of shape we have today, a whole bunch of shapes were developed, and it'd be really neat to know, say, when the Bulldog first appeared (and whether it or the Rhodesian came first). It'd also be kinda neat to know what was trendy when; what all the swellest young Victorians were smoking in 1859, that sort of thing.
I've been Googling away at this, but either my Google Fu is weak, or this sort of information seems to have been lost in the mists of time. Which strikes me as too bad.

 
According to a few antique catalogs, posters, and books at The Briary, bulldogs seemed to be (in print anyways) very popular in France between early 1900-1925. It stuck around until now, warping into other shapes of whim by designers and artisans. But, what intrigues me, is why? It's shape doesn't relate to anything else. It is very unique and unusual in comparison to what other pipe shapes were of the time. But, as per discussion and speculation at the B&M, it was a shape that lent itself well to mass production. Two cones, square shank, easy to machine, finish, and roll off the assembly line. And, many featured die pressed metal (gold plate and sterling) adornments, such as rim and bowl covers and elaborate banding. They used redmanol and bekelite stems, because they could be mold cast for mass production as well. All of which coincide with this boom in mass produced goods and products.
It is odd that things that "look" mass produced would have ever been preferable, to the eyes, but this was the Art Nouveau era, and even the art market preferred the "look" of prints and cast sculptures, as opposed to paint applied by hand. So, the bulldog became classic, because of it's machine-made look. Whereas today, most of us prefer the hand-made "look" as an opposition to machine-made.
This is, of course just educated speculation, based on industrial history, art history, and looking through the printed catalogs and posters that were used to market them.
Images copied from ads for sale on ebay

$_57.JPG


$T2eC16N,!ysE9sy0hYpWBQ4MiCoNSQ~~60_57.JPG


 

fearsclave

Starting to Get Obsessed
Mar 9, 2014
209
0
Interesting; I hadn't realized that the Bulldog's design might have been driven by manufacturing considerations. The first time I smoked mine the ergonomic felt great, and I thought that that was the reason for their popularity. I had this mental image of some artisan realizing how well his finger laid along the top cone, and improving on that...
Neat images, BTW.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
It seems creative carving always superseded discussion and recording of the invention of shapes. Ideas were

passed along quickly in a see-do culture, with no one keeping journals or diaries of the process. How did the

author shape edge into the diplomat, or vice versa, or the bulldog into the Rhodesian. Or the Calabash into

the Dublin, and so on, and on. From the 19th Century (1800's) on, pipe manufacture was highly competitive,

so workshops were secretive about changes and innovation, and the visual appearance of pipes was one of the

major ways to gain a competitive edge. Somewhere maybe there are diaries of one or two pipe carvers who also

verbalized the experience and history of this, but little seems to have surfaced, as near as I can tell. Maybe a

craftsmens' ethic disdained and mistrusted talk and writing. Show me the pipe and I'll say yay or nay.

 
I think your right MSO. What would the intentions of the designer matter anyways? Even in Art History, historians discount the artist's intentions to the meanings that the populace actual pulls from the work. For example, if Mark Twain had been expecting for the book Tom Sawyer to display how religion has corrupted humanity, he failed, because the readers get an adventure that shows the humanity between the races and social classes as Tom overcomes... blah, blah, blah. If Picasso was trying to show us some inner dynamic geometry of the fourth dimension, who cares. No one gets that anymore.

What we are really left with is how its marketed, and how the shapes evolved.
Personally, I have thought and read more about the bulldog shape, as it is one of my favorite shapes as well. The Oom Paul is interesting, but so darn ugly looking that I haven't been able to get into those as much. They just look too flaccid and droopy.

 
  • Like
Reactions: Fralphog
May 31, 2012
4,295
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I wish there was a book on this subject, maybe there is but I ain't found it.
It is difficult to find anything substantive and would take enormous research time.
The small variants make the task more tricky too,

here's an old discussion of the Cutty vs. the Belge,

http://pipesmagazine.com/forums/topic/cutty-versus-belge
You'd have to look through old catalogs, period photographs and perhaps paintings, but even then things would be murky I'd reckon, does anyone have a definitive answer on the Rhodesian? Seems there's a lot of debate about it, as far as the name is concerned and who first originated the design.
Those who believe the rhodesian has a round shank and the bulldog a diamond shank are correct. Because, they agree with me. ;) Honestly, I really can't see any other line of demarkation between the two that make any sense at all. I know the whole bowl shape thing has been flogged like many dead horses, but when it comes down to it, the rhodsian is a round shanked bent bulldog and the bent bulldog is a diamond shank rhodesian.

GLP
http://pipesmagazine.com/forums/topic/bulldog-or-rhodesian
Here's a nice pic of Frederick Bruce Thomas smoking a bulldog in Paris circa 1896

Frederick%20Thomas%20w%20pipe.JPG

Neatpipes has a good write up about the chubby billiard, these "sport pipes" seemed to be popular way back when and quite a few different makers made them, but who originated the design? Perhaps we'll never know.

http://www.neatpipes.com/blog/built-for-comfort-a-short-history-of-the-chubby-style/&id=7
pete1901a.png

Jacques Cole has a pretty good brief general article on topic,

http://www.smokemag.com/0998/pipes/shape.htm
I still haven't got a copy of History of the Calabash Pipe, mainly because I think if I read it I'd have to go out and get a Calabash!
A similar book on the evolution and origins of briar pipe shapes would be totally fascinating.
Like what do we call this 1908 Peterson,

a diamond shank bent billiard?

Patent-1908-b.jpg


http://ermtony.blogspot.com/2010/04/peterson-patent-181-b-short.html
14536-Walter-J--Travis--smoking-pipe.jpg


Jean_Metzinger,_1911-12,_Man_with_a_Pipe_%28Portrait_of_an_American_Smoker%29,_oil_on_canvas,_92.7_x_65.4_cm_%2836.5_x_25.75_in%29,_Lawrence_University,_Appleton,_Wisconsin.jpg


il_570xN.372950576_9921.jpg


 

monty55

Lifer
Apr 16, 2014
1,722
3,560
65
Bryan, Texas
Interesting. I was pondering shapes myself the other day. As a newer pipe smoker I found it quite refreshing that the styles of old are still in style. And when I am on Pipedia, or other places and I'm reading about a cutting edge carver that is creating great pipes, I find myself looking at how THEY address an age old design shape for a pipe. I find the ones that take a shape that has been around forever and can still manage to cast a new light, put a new feel or slant if you will on their pipe always brings a smile to my face. I also have thought that it's too bad for the pipe smokers of old that they never got the opportunity to enjoy the new shapes and forms that we do in the present day.

 
Love the artwork mrlowercase. "Rhodesia" as a word came about at almost the same time as the popularity of the bulldog, 1890's or so. It is a landlocked territory near South Africa named for Cecil Rhodes. And, I'm pretty sure the people of that territory preferred round shanked bulldogs. :wink:

 

phred

Lifer
Dec 11, 2012
1,754
4
Oom Pauls are the classic example of these, although I have to wonder whether the Oom Paul had been around longer, and just got nicknamed after Paul Kruger.
According to Fred Hanna's "The Perfect Smoke", the Oom Paul shape was also (or originally) called a "Hungarian" - and Mr. Hanna still uses that nomenclature, as he's not a fan of Paul Kruger...

 
Aug 14, 2012
2,872
123
Lowercase: I love the bicycle picture signed by Dorothy. Our aesthetic reactions are interesting. I always thought the Hungarian is a beautiful pipe, yet someone called it ugly and droopy. I think the bulldog is an ugly pipe, though in many ways one of the best shapes because of the extra mass and cooling fin around the center of the bowl, where it gets hottest.

 

aggravatedfarmer

Part of the Furniture Now
Sep 9, 2015
865
3
A reviving this old thread due to my curiosity.
Churchwardens were made for wardens that watched the churches at night to keep thieves at bay. Oom Paul's are actually Hungarians that Paul Kroger (last name correct) favored. Cavaliers were made for German (or a different European) horseman.
I myself know very little on this subject. I know about Meersechaum and cobs. But a complete compiled list of origins would be an excellent read.

 

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,570
27,079
Carmel Valley, CA
Church Wardens weren't primarily night watchmen; still aren't! There'd be committee meetings of the Church Wardens, and that's where the pipe smoking largely took place and where the name of that style of pipe arose.
Some churches had dozens and dozens of wardens, mostly volunteers, whose duties encompassed all aspects of the church except music and liturgy- so, yes, maintenance would be included as well as watching for trespassers, thieves and vandals.

 
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