Preben Holm Private Collection (B) XL Smooth Volcano Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

Though he would tragically pass away at the age of 42, Preben Holm was one of the pioneering figures in the ‘Danish design’ movement in 20th century pipe-making – a movement that still dominates the high-grade pipe scene. By hand-shaping his pipes on a belt sander, Holm was able to make the most of the patterns of grain hidden within briar, creating spectacular works of pipe art that looked just as good as they smoked. Owing to Holm’s untimely passing, his pipes are even more highly sought after than they were during his lifetime.

As mentioned in our recent newsletters, this is one of a significant number of unsmoked Preben Holm pipes that came through our trade-in program recently. A few of those have already been snapped up by our most devoted newsletter readers (don’t forget to sign up if you haven’t already), though there are more to come.

Preben Holm’s workshop made many different series and ranges of pipes, with these pipes being in various styles and finishes. Some of these pipes were made by Holm himself, but many were also made by his highly skilled apprentices, such as Poul Winslow. Identifying pipes made by Holm himself is not an easy task, but there are pipes that can be identified with absolute certainly as being Holm’s own work. For his mature period (1970s-1980s), we know that only Holm made his highest-grade pipes, and we know that the series names for such pipes were the “Nobel Prize” (used for pipes subcontracted under the Ben Wade brand) and the “Private Collection” (the latter being a naming convention that Holm’s protege, Winslow, would carry on for his own highest-grade pipes). This is an example of the latter: a superbly crafted, straight grain volcano sitter, with a twisting, vulcanite stem marked with Preben Holm’s signature. Notably, Holm carved the bowl with the bare plateaux burl facing down, rather than the more typical upward configuration, though he seems to have done this for an ingenious reason. After all, the multitude of plant fibers that comprise a growing root burl tend to flare outward from its center, making for grain that gels perfectly with certain shapes simply depending on the rotation of the block during carving. On the other hand, this perfection is much easier to attain if you’re a master like Preben Holm was.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, with an original bowl coating, and comes with its original, special Private Collection leather sleeve. Some slight handling marks around the bowl, though nothing major.

Details:

Length: 6.8″ / 172.7mm

Bowl Width: 0.80 / 20.32mm

Bowl Depth: 2.06″ / 52.32mm

Weight: 2.8oz / 80g