Peterson (c.1980s) Shamrock 501 Large Smooth Lovat Estate Briar Pipe, Irish Estates

Description

Peterson pipes generally need no introduction, but just in case you’re unfamiliar: in 1876, a Latvian named Charles Peterson immigrated to Ireland and was hired making pipes in a workshop owned by Frederick and George Kapp. After rising through the ranks to become head craftsman, Peterson bought into the Kapp’s business, which was renamed, Kapp & Peterson (K&P). During this time, Peterson himself applied for several patents for pipe designs, including the world-famous Peterson’s System. Since then, Peterson has become one of the most recognizable names in pipe smoking and continues to produce high quality pipes from their headquarters in Dublin.

The Shamrock was a sub-brand of sorts that appeared, in various guises, between the 1940s and the late 2000s. A Shamrock with nomenclature such as this one has will have been made between 1965 and 1998, as per Irwin and Malmberg’s Peterson Pipe Book, though Irwin’s ongoing, supplementary Peterson Pipe Notes suggests this one may have been closer to the 1980s. As with Shamrocks from the 1965-1998 period, the essential design is a stripped-down rendition of a Peterson shape, dressed in a simple blonde stain and fitted with a fishtail vulcanite stem. But the shape itself is a little out of the ordinary. It is a classical Lovat, and Peterson does indeed still make a Lovat shape, that being the 53. This, on the other hand, is a 501, a longer, larger rendition than its contemporary counterparts. The 501 belongs to a series of pipes, dubbed the “‘500’ shapes,” which Irwin speculates to have been made around the 1980s, possibly for the American market (where bigger is, of course, better). The 1980s also, as Irwin has noted, coincided with a far broader decline in pipe sales, and one might speculate that this is one reason that 500 shapes are so uncommon on the estate market today. As for new pipes, most 500 shapes haven’t been in regular production for a long time.

The condition is very good. Minor inner rim darkening, a couple of small scratches on the bowl, and very slight handling marks.

Details:

Length: 6.2″ / 157.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.87 / 22.09mm

Bowl Depth: 1.66″ / 42.16mm

Weight: 1.6oz / 48g