Butz Choquin D’Artagnan Deluxe 84 Smooth Cavalier Estate Briar Pipe, French Estates

Description

With its origins in an 1858 collaboration between Jean-Baptiste Choquin and Gustave Butz, Butz-Choquin ultimately become one of the premier smoking pipe companies in 20th century France. The brand is known both for its stylish variations on traditional English-French shapes and for its exploration of atypical and elaborate finishes. The brand is also known for its collaborations with celebrated French pipe-makers, such as Paul Lanier and Alain Albuisson, who made some of Butz-Choquin’s highest-grade pipes for the company. 

I’ve found that most French pipes, if they are given a name of national cultural significance, tend toward locales and landmarks, like Chacom’s Champs Elysees and Montmartre pipes, Jeantet’s d’Orsay, or Butz-Choquin’s own Saint-Tropez and Marigny lines. This rather beautiful piece from the latter, however, is instead named after a certain monsieur d’Artagnan, who was, of course, one of France’s iconic historical personae. So iconic was d’Artagnan that he would end up as a protagonist in the novels of another French icon, author Alexandre Dumas. The pipe itself is, as mentioned, a genuinely beautiful work, taking the form of a true cavalier, with a removable, amber-toned “foot” for easy cleaning and moisture management.

The condition is good. Some rim charring and slight wear to the pipe’s accents.

Details:

Length: 7.5″ / 190.5mm

Bowl Width: 0.83 / 21.08mm

Bowl Depth: 2.29″ / 58.16mm

Weight: 2.6oz / 76g