Caminetto (c.1968-75) Business 108 Rusticated Pot Estate Briar Pipe, Italian Estates

Caminetto was, and is to this day, a decisive figure in the history of Italy’s pipe workshop tradition. After spending time developing their skills in the Castello workshop, Guiseppe Ascorti and Luigi Radice left to found their own venture, which they named, “Caminetto.” Here, Ascorti and Radice were able to create their own now-classic shapes and finishes, such as the rusticated “Business,” and the carved, wax-drip “New Dear.”

Caminetto’s early Business finish could reasonably be described as Guiseppe Ascorti and Luigi Radice’s re-imagining of the early Castello Sea Rock finishes. Both were a form of stony, weathered rustication that has since become a veritable institution across Italian pipe making, and both were decidedly rugged in application, ultimately transforming into a finer, more granular form in later decades. One might say the early Business was even more rugged than the early Castello Sea Rock, which paired especially well with the shapes that Ascorti and Radice favored. While still largely rooted in the Anglo-French tradition, Caminetto’s shapes tended towards the bold and the brash, with a deliberate emphasis on muscle and rough edges. This “108” pot is certainly not lacking in that department, and includes an eye-catching fumed rim to further drive its brash aesthetic home. Judging by its “bird in flight” stem logo, this Caminetto looks to be a relatively early one, from around 1968-75, back when Ascorti and Radice were still the driving forces behind the Caminetto workshop.

The condition is good. Some rim darkening and slight tooth marks.

Details:

Length: 6.1″ / 152.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.88 / 22.35mm

Bowl Depth: 1.24″ / 31.496mm

Weight: 1.6oz / 48g