Don Carlos 2 Note Partially Rusticated Bulldog Estate Briar Pipe, Italian Estates

Description

Don Carlos belongs to a historic lineage within Italian pipe making. The workshop was founded by Bruto Sordini (along with his wife Rosaria), who had previously made pipes for Mastro de Paja, where he also met Giancarlo Guidi. In 1981, Sordini and Guidi left Mastro de Paja to found their own workshop, Ser Jacopo. After years of making pipes at Ser Jacopo, Sordini once again departed to found a new venture, as he had ideas for shapes and styles that were quite different to Ser Jacopo’s established design philosophy. Sordini therefore created Don Carlos as a means of expressing this vision, resulting in pipes that are both quintessentially Italian, and bearing aesthetic that is wholly their own.

The Italian artisans, especially those who cut their teeth in the 20th century workshop scene, seem particularly fond of stout bulldog renditions. Whether it’s Caminetto, Ser Jacopo, or—in this instance—Don Carlos, Italian bulldogs tend to have a fair bit of muscle to them, a proclivity shared perhaps most notably with their American counterparts. Being Italian, of course, these artisans are also particularly fond of rugged, rusticated finishes, turning an already rather assertive form into something truly befitting its namesake.

This one from the Sordinis combines those elements in a design that is bold but also not without elegance. Utilizing a mixed finish approach, the bowl’s “jaw” still possesses the characteristic sharpness of the Italian pebble-dash, while its upper section has been left smooth polished, with straight grain rising out of the rough right around the bowl’s bead-lines.

The condition is fair. Some rim charring and handling marks.

Details:

Length: 6.1″ / 154.9mm

Bowl Width: 0.96 / 24.38mm

Bowl Depth: 1.82″ / 46.22mm

Weight: 2.6oz / 76g