Recently Gifted a Set of Dunhills. I Was Hoping for Some History and Info

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pitchfork

Lifer
May 25, 2012
4,030
605
I asked my aunt about that and she told me it was a meershaum pipe that was broken many moons ago.

Wow. What an incredible set it must have been, and I bet it also cost a fair bit when new.. It's still quite valuable, though. Those are beautiful, highly collectible pipes.
 
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paulfg

Lifer
Feb 21, 2016
1,566
2,931
Corfu Greece
They do look in excellent condition. The pipes marked DR (Dead Root) are the highest grade.

"The Dead Root idea was conceived at the end of the 1920s and then realized in the early 1930 years. The Dead-Root brought a stronger grain feature to the already well established "Bruyère" (from 1932 on it received the same finish). The D.R. models are perfect. Made with the best Briar available and that is – compulsorily – "Straight Grain". They are rare models of considerable value, which vary according to the graduation of the grain."

The dating above is not correct, as your pipes show. For more on that see,

https://pipedia.org/images/0/00/DunhillbyLoring.pdf

For some good reference see the different sections of the Dunhill article at pipedia,

Dunhill - Pipedia - https://pipedia.org/wiki/Dunhill#Dead_Root
Dave I hope you mentioned about sending to some one like Piffy to clean and polish etc
 
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paulfg

Lifer
Feb 21, 2016
1,566
2,931
Corfu Greece
Thank you for the info. You mentioned getting them restored. Can you explain that process and what all is involved and is it recommended to do so?
they look in great condition but could probably do with a wax and polish and if not smoked for 80 plus years an internal clean as they could smell/taste musty.
There are some good people on this forum who know the right people to do this.Ihave no personal experience of USA based people but Dave
dmcmtk
can advise you
 
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AmtPav

Lurker
Dec 16, 2019
39
82
they look in great condition but could probably do with a wax and polish and if not smoked for 80 plus years an internal clean as they could smell/taste musty.
There are some good people on this forum who know the right people to do this.Ihave no personal experience of USA based people but Dave
dmcmtk
can advise you
I am wanting to preserve and care for these the best way possible. If having this done is advisable then I am very interested. I know refinishing/restoring/cleaning/polishing/ect when it comes to antiques is a mixed bag of when you should/shouldn't. If this won't detract from them in anyway I am very open to information.
 
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oldguyoldpipes

Starting to Get Obsessed
Sep 20, 2019
265
628
Never let those go. The Shell is beautiful and the other two look fabulous too.
I'm no Dunhill expert, but it looks like the Shell has a small underlined 3, so wouldn't that make it a 1923? The DR also has an underlined small 3. Is there a chance all these pipes were made as a set from 1923? Fantastic!
 
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mau1

Lifer
Jan 5, 2018
1,124
837
Ontario, Canada
It might be worth it to ask your Aunt a bit more about the broken meerschaum pipe. Perhaps it's sitting, gathering dust in some drawer, just waiting to be found. You never know...
 
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alaskanpiper

Enabler in Chief
May 23, 2019
9,348
42,243
Alaska
Amazing set of pipes you have been given with some amazing family history. NEVER sell them, even though they would probably fetch 4 figures. If it were me, I would have them restored for sure by an expert that someone here can recommend.

Congrats! An awesome heirloom.
 
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AmtPav

Lurker
Dec 16, 2019
39
82
Amazing set of pipes you have been given with some amazing family history. NEVER sell them, even though they would probably fetch 4 figures. If it were me, I would have them restored for sure by an expert that someone here can recommend.

Congrats! An awesome heirloom.
Thank you! The plan is to hold onto them. I am interested to learn more about restoring them. Hopefully someone will chime in on this.
 

lightmybriar

Lifer
Mar 11, 2014
1,315
1,838
Thank you! The plan is to hold onto them. I am interested to learn more about restoring them. Hopefully someone will chime in on this.
The restoration of these would be fairly straightforward and simple. They are in great shape. Anthony Cook is my man of choice, and I would highly recommend him as someone who has proven trustworthy and competent with items like these.
 
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jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,568
27,074
Carmel Valley, CA
Yes, one of the best.

But, do these pipes need "restoration"? Cleaning, waxing and buffing, yes, and maybe gentle reaming. But unless you're going to smoke them (and I would!) you don't need to ream.

Photos of each pipe individually, from a few angles, would be "a good thing".
 
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mau1

Lifer
Jan 5, 2018
1,124
837
Ontario, Canada
I will be back in town this weekend and plan to comb through a few more of the possesions that the family didn't want.
Wouldn't that be something if you are enough to find the broken pipe? Depending on the amount of damage, it may be repairable. What was considered beyond repair 90 or so years ago may be quite doable in this day and age.
I love a good treasure hunt, who knows what you will find? Pipe tools from Dunhill, ashtrays, pipe racks...one man's junk is another man's treasure.
 
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