Elliott Nachwalter Pipeworks Smooth Bulldog Estate Briar Pipe, American Estates
Out of stock
Description
Though originally trained in the History of Art and Photography, Elliott Nachwalter would ultimately become one of the pioneering figures of American artisan pipe making. Nachwalter first worked with another American pioneer, Andrew Marks, before establishing The Briar Workshop with Jorg Jemelka in Vermont. The Briar Workshop was not only a place where one could purchase high-grade, handmade American pipes, but a hub for learning and collaboration. Notable alumni of the Workshop included, for example, Brad Pohlmann and J.T. Cooke. Nachwalter later moved to New York where he continued to make and sell pipes under the Pipeworks brand, before going on hiatus from the craft in the mid-1980s. In 1996, Nachwalter finally returned to pipe making, continuing his legacy from his home workshop in Arlington.
It takes quite a lot to make a bulldog—a shape whose namesake is, quite aptly, a snub nosed canine—graceful. But it’s not impossible. Poul Rasmussen, Emil Chonowitsch, and Poul Ilsted made many a graceful bulldog in their day, and Anne Julie and Manduela Riger-Kusk continue to create very elegant renditions of their own. Outside of Denmark, though, it’s less common to see, which is why this one from Elliott Nachwalter is so refreshing. Nachwalter’s bulldog is quite reminiscent of some of his Danish contemporaries, in fact, taking the form of a long, slender, supple, and quite lightweight take on the old Anglo-French staple. I do wonder whether at least the older generation might have been a source of influence there. If I have my dating right, this bulldog should have been made in 1984, or the early 1980s at least, so that could well be the case. Or, it could simply be a case of great minds thinking alike.
The condition is good. Some inner rim darkening, a slightly over-reamed chamber, and some finish fading.
Details:
Length: 6.1″ / 154.9mm
Bowl Width: 0.96 / 24.38mm
Bowl Depth: 1.59″ / 40.38mm
Weight: 1.4oz / 42g