Charatan’s Make First Lane Era (1961-5) Belvedere Extra Large Free Shape Smooth Apple Estate Briar Pipe, English Estates

Description

While Dunhill may be Britain’s most famous pipe brand, Charatan is not only older, but has the honor of being the first to have made its pipes entirely in-house. “Charatan’s Make” referred to the fact that, at a time when other pipe companies were sourcing stummels and stems carved from other companies before assembling them in their factories and workshops, Charatan made every part of their pipes on the Charatan premises. So began a legacy of high-quality pipe-making under the Charatan name, one whose employees, at one time or another, included Joel Sasieni (later of Dunhill, then Sasieni fame), Stan Haney (later of Ashby Hall), Dennis Marshall (later of Milville), and Ken Barnes and Barry Jones (later of James Upshall).

Charatan’s “Free Shape” pipes are quite rare. As far as designs went, they were somewhere between a standard Charatan and a freehand, but did not technically belong to either category. Unlike standard Charatan pipes, they were not made in accordance with the factory’s house shape charts; unlike Charatan freehands, they were not principally shaped by hand. Instead, they were largely machine-turned pipes of a non-standard shape (though some degree hand shaping will have undoubtedly been involved), hence the “Free Shape” terminology. This one takes the form of a relatively traditional, large apple, for example, with what looks to be a faux plateaux rim. Based on the nomenclature, specifically the block-letter “MADE BY HAND,” this one should have been made between 1961 and 1965, during the early years of the make’s famous “Lane era.”

The condition is good. Some rim darkening and minor finish fading.

Details:

Length: 6″ / 152.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.96 / 24.38mm

Bowl Depth: 1.54″ / 39.11mm

Weight: 1.8oz / 52g