Charatan’s Make First Lane Era (1961-5) Belvedere Extra Large Free Shape Smooth “Keel” Bent Billiard 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.

In the case of this one, it is ostensibly a large bent billiard sitter, though it also incorporates an unusual maritime motif that was quite popular at Charatan back in the day, which was known as the “Keel.” As the name suggests, the base of the bowl was shaped to resemble the underside of a ship’s hull, including a prominent bow at the very front. Keel motifs were normally incorporates into entirely freehand shapes, though it seems that, at least in some instances, they were also added to more traditionally manufactured designs, like this one. As for dating, the block-lettered “MADE BY HAND” stamped on the pipe’s shank, along with its Double Comfort mouthpiece, would indicate a 1961-5 make, also known as the “first Lane era.” These were the years during which Herman Lane first acquired F. Charatan & Son (he had been the company’s exclusive US distributor since 1955), and stewarded the make into global acclaim.

The condition is fair. Some rim darkening, finish fading, and chamber slightly over-reamed. There is a natural flaw in the briar at the shank end, though it does not extend deep into the briar, so there should be no worries about structural integrity. In other words, it’s cosmetic, but I’ve adjusted the price to reflect it in any case.

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.86 / 21.84mm

Bowl Depth: 1.60″ / 40.64mm

Weight: 1.9oz / 56g