Charatan’s Make First Lane Era (c. 1961-5) Selected Smooth Dublin 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 (who went on to work at Dunhill, before leaving again to start the Sasieni make), Dennis Marshall (previously of Barling, later of Milville), Dan Tennison, Stan Haney (later of Ashby Hall), and Ken Barnes and Barry Jones (later of James Upshall).

During the Reuben era of Charatan pipes—the time when Reuben Charatan owned and operated F. Charatan & Son—the Selected was the penultimate grade achievable by any given pipe, surpassed in quality only by the Supreme. During the Lane era(s)—the time when Herman Lane’s Lane Ltd. took ownership of F. Charatan & Son—the company’s grading system was continually expanded, with new grades inserted within and—in some cases—beyond the modest four that Reuben Charatan had worked by. The Selected remained in the upper echelons of Charatan’s system, however, and, true to their name, these were select pipes, available to the select few who could find and afford one.

Based on the nomenclature, this Selected grade was made during the “first Lane era” between approximately 1961 and 1965, back when Herman Lane first took full ownership of Charatan’s Make. This period is often considered to have been some of the best—if not the best years for Charatan pipes, especially the pipes from its freehand workshop. When presented with pipes like this one, it’s not hard to see why. The shaping is “classic Charatan,” taking the form of a large, long-shanked, freehand Dublin, and the briar is exceptional, with straight grain lining its signature “bell” bowl.

The condition is great. Minor inner rim darkening and a couple of very slight scratches on the bowl.

Details:

Length: 6.8″ / 172.72mm

Bowl Width: 1.18 / 29.97mm

Bowl Depth: 1.85″ / 46.99mm

Weight: 2.6oz / 74g