Sasieni Family Era (c.1960-79) Four Dot Ruff Root Viscount Lascelles S XS Sandblasted Bent Billiard Estate Briar Pipe, English Estates

Description

Along with names like Barling, Charatan, and Dunhill Sasieni holds a special place in the history of English smoking pipes – one near to its very beginnings. So the story goes, Sasieni himself worked for Dunhill during its early days. But eventually he left Dunhill, having his own ideas about how pipes should be made, and founded Sasieni. This was 1919, and Sasieni has been the closest thing to a household name in English pipes ever since.

Sandblasted pipes were not entirely unheard of during Sasieni’s early decades, when the make was under the watch of Joel Sasieni, but they were not especially common, either. It was not until Joel’s son Alfred entered into the picture that a specific line of sandblasted Sasienis was added to its catalog. In 1960, Alfred patented his own, special sandblasting process, the fruits of which were known as the “Ruff-Root.” Despite being relatively late into the game in that regard, Alfred’s Ruff-Root pipes were genuinely excellent, especially those that qualified for Sasieni’s prized Four Dot grade. This one is quite exemplary, with a deep, ring grain sandblast that could easily go toe-to-toe with a Dunhill Tanshell or a Charatan Relief.

The shape is a good one, too. Named for the distinguished English gentleman, Henry George Charles Lascelles, the Viscount Lascelles (also known as the “56”) was a rather large, 3/4 bent billiard rendition. It was—and remains—quite the favorite among Sasieni enthusiasts, though it was presumably also quite expensive to manufacture, as the shape ultimately came to be priced at a premium relative to most others in Sasieni’s catalogs (as designated by the “XS” nomenclature). Speaking of nomenclature, the stamping on this one indicates a “family era” make, i.e., manufactured before the Sasieni family sold their company in 1979. As the Ruff-Root was patented in 1960, that would place this one somewhere between 1960 and 1979.

The condition is good. Some rim charring and minor finish fading.

Details: 

Length: 6.1″ / 154.9mm

Bowl Width: 0.87 / 22.09mm

Bowl Depth: 1.63″ / 41.40mm

Weight: 1.4oz / 42g