Peterson Plato / Plateau Natural Smooth Freehand 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.

As Mark Irwin’s ever-reliable Peterson Pipe Notes documents, the Peterson Plato, or Plateau, series is one that’s shrouded in a little bit of mystery. It appears—per Irwin—that it debuted in the mid-1970s, and that it was the brainchild of the legendary Paddy Larrigan, who headed production at Peterson for many decades. Against the backdrop of the Danish pipe boom of the 1960s and 1970s, the Plato was a “freehand” pipe very much in the Danish sense, being hand-shaped from blocks of plateaux briar, with the plateaux burl itself incorporated into their resulting forms (the name was, as such, a pun, though I must confess that I’ve always thought it a strange one—I suppose, while more appropriate, the Peterson Heraclitus or Schopenhauer doesn’t have the same ring to it). In Any case, the Plato/Plateau has always been sporadic production-wise, with very few having been made with each, very occasional, release. This one is an even rarer example of one in a Natural finish, no doubt on account of its excellent straight grain.

The condition is very good. Some minor inner rim darkening and slight scratches around the bowl.

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.96 / 24.38mm

Bowl Depth: 1.83″ / 46.48mm

Weight: 2.6oz / 74g