Maybe Very Old Meerschaum - Your Advice Entreated

[MisterBadger]

This arrived in the post this afternoon. I paid silly money for it in an auction at which I was the only bidder (the postage cost more than the pipe). Now, O Wise Ones, I have two questions to ask:

1. Date and provenance? There are no marks on it whatever. The silver band is not hallmarked, which indicates only that it probably isn't British, but continental. Some might say Vienna would be a no-brainer? I don't know. The bowl shape and spur is of a style popular in clay pipes from the mid 18thC to the early 19thC, and I have a sort of uneducated vibe that it's early in that period rather than late - what do you all think?

2. Restoration? As you can see, there is about an inch of the amber stem missing. Since I 'm told smoked amber tends to get brittle with age, an attempt at re-threading would be too risky to warrant the effort. I have a mind to ask around a few professional pipe restorers in UK about the probable cost of a replacement, threaded amber stem, or a Lucite one. Have you any thoughts, or recommendations?

 

[xrundog]

I agree it’s 19th century. Pretty well used. It’s possible hallmarks have been rubbed out. But I. Think if that were likely there would be a case label.
All the meerschaums I sent out for stem replacement came back with tortoise shell acrylic with bits I didn’t like. Not horrible, but not great either. The pipes were usable which is a 100% improvement, so I shouldn’t complain. Maybe someone in the UK can do better. Amber is really, really expensive. I priced it maybe 15 years ago and it was something like $100 an inch.

 

[OzPiper]

British/English made pipes, or more commonly for the time, pipes imported into Britain/England to be “finished” (ie blinged up with silver) have to be hallmarked if intended for sale in Britain/England.
If intended for export, the silver DOES NOT have to be hallmarked.

@condorlover1 or @ashdigger will be the best persons for advice on restoring old meer cuttys as they both have shitloads of them

Getting a new acrylic stem will be a much more practical solution than an amber replacement.
Old amber is very fragile and will snap, chip or disintegrate unless handled with kids gloves.
Apart from the cost

Contact Mike Billington of Blakemar pipes to see if he will take on the job Since you are in the UK.
I have an old Loewe pipe with one of his replacement stems (vulcanite) - an excellent job, complete with a correct orific bit.

 

[condorlover1]

Heavily canted 'cutty' of probable Viennese manufacture. The dye job on the lining is a good give away and if it features a squat double headed eagle in the case lid then you have a Vienna pipe. As to bands I would suggest probably repaired and that you are looking at a Britannia Metal band. Don't bother with the amber since the pipe is in excess of 6" so any amber stem will be stressed by gravity since that is approaching Church Warden length. If the bone tenon is in the shank firmly then do not f*ck with it and just get a new stem. Remember the draught holes for those pipes are tortuous and they do not pass a pipe cleaner easily so think long thin wire. Put a 'butt' plug in the pipe otherwise you will fight an ever lasting battle against tobacco fragments blocking up the shank. Enjoy your pipe!

 

[fishmansf]

I was waiting for @condorlover1 to swoop in and save the day and he did not fail

 

[SmokeyJock]

With a new stem that's gonna be an absolutely gorgeous pipe

 

[MisterBadger]

Getting a new acrylic stem will be a much more practical solution than an amber replacement.
Old amber is very fragile and will snap, chip or disintegrate unless handled with kids gloves.
Apart from the cost

Contact Mike Billington of Blakemar pipes to see if he will take on the job Since you are in the UK.
I have an old Loewe pipe with one of his replacement stems (vulcanite) - an excellent job, complete with a correct orific bit.

- Many thanks, @OzPiper: advice much appreciated.

 

[MisterBadger]

Heavily canted 'cutty' of probable Viennese manufacture. The dye job on the lining is a good give away and if it features a squat double headed eagle in the case lid then you have a Vienna pipe. As to bands I would suggest probably repaired and that you are looking at a Britannia Metal band. Don't bother with the amber since the pipe is in excess of 6" so any amber stem will be stressed by gravity since that is approaching Church Warden length. If the bone tenon is in the shank firmly then do not f*ck with it and just get a new stem. Remember the draught holes for those pipes are tortuous and they do not pass a pipe cleaner easily so think long thin wire. Put a 'butt' plug in the pipe otherwise you will fight an ever lasting battle against tobacco fragments blocking up the shank. Enjoy your pipe!

@condorlover1: There's no imperial Habsburg eagle in the case lid, though the lining is very faded and there may well have been one there once. Your comment about the old repair with white metal does seem likely. The tenon is, fortunately, quite firm and @xrundog, @OzPiper and your good self can't all be wrong about getting an acrylic replacement stem. Draught hole protection and shank cleaning advice, a double bonus. I have no idea how to confer a grateful blessing upon you that would be consistent with your values and beliefs and so not cause offence, so I'll just hazard this: May George Washington set an egret feather in your bicorn

 

[MisterBadger]

With a new stem that's gonna be an absolutely gorgeous pipe

She may look it but I will praise no pipe until I have smoked it. Having said that, she looks to have been smoked a lot. Certain cultures profess an almost animist belief in the transmigration of psychic energy from a person to a frequently-used object - some call it Mana, others, Berakah, and I anticipate that she is suffused with past enjoyments. Apart from being careful with my pennies, that's another reason I like estate pipes.

 

[condorlover1]

To give you some idea of what your pipe will look like after refurbishment look at the group of 'cutty' pipes on the bottom right of the picture. This a group photograph taken about 8 years ago and is familiar to anyone who has been hanging around here for a few years as it represents a small part of my extensive collection. I was also looking at a close up of your pipe and I noticed that the foot has what appears to be a hairline crack. If you are in the U.K I would suggest sending the pipe to Northern Briars Northern Briars | Smoking Pipes | Pipes | Tobacco Pipes - https://www.northernbriars.co.uk/ since they are very good with this type of 'road smash' and also do silver work which you may need to reinforce the foot of your pipe.

 

[MisterBadger]

To give you some idea of what your pipe will look like after refurbishment look at the group of 'cutty' pipes on the bottom right of the picture. This a group photograph taken about 8 years ago and is familiar to anyone who has been hanging around here for a few years as it represents a small part of my extensive collection. I was also looking at a close up of your pipe and I noticed that the foot has what appears to be a hairline crack. If you are in the U.K I would suggest sending the pipe to Northern Briars Northern Briars | Smoking Pipes | Pipes | Tobacco Pipes - https://www.northernbriars.co.uk/ since they are very good with this type of 'road smash' and also do silver work which you may need to reinforce the foot of your pipe.

View attachment 342610

Wah. Seriously impressed. I was wondering why I'd never seen one like mine before. Looks like you have collected all the other surviving Meer cutties in the world

 

[condorlover1]

Here are a few more. The one at the bottom of the picture is an example of Northern Briars silver work since he carefully constructed a silver collar and 'cup' to support a previously damaged early 20th century meerschaum 'cutty' pipe of Austrian manufacture.

 

[MisterBadger]

Here are a few more. The one at the bottom of the picture is an example of Northern Briars silver work since he carefully constructed a silver collar and 'cup' to support a previously damaged early 20th century meerschaum 'cutty' pipe of Austrian manufacture.

Nice work, that, @condorlover1 - thank you.