Sasieni Four Dot Grosvenor Patent, Rusticated Bulldog 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.

Originally (1919-24), Sasieni’s highest-end pipes were marked with a single, light blue dot. But, after an unfortunate legal battle with Dunhill, who also marked their pipes with single dots (or, rather, ‘spots’), Sasieni was forced to come up with another stem logo. Enter the ‘Four Dot,’ a series featuring a variety of shapes and finishes, but which were all considered the make’s best pipes. The style of these dots did, however, still change over the years, as did their accompanying nomenclature. This particular Four Dot is one of the make’s original bent bulldog models, the “Grosvenor”. As far as I am aware, the style and position of its stem dots, along with the Sasieni nomenclature, model name, and patent stamping, indicate this to be a pipe made for American imports prior to World War II (precisely how far prior to WWII these stamps were used is debated).

The condition is great. There is some rim darkening and a small patch of char on the inner right lip, but the pipe is nonetheless remarkably preserved.

 

Details:

Length: 5.6″ / 137.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.84 / 23.36mm

Bowl Depth: 1.41″ / 35.81mm

Weight: 1.9oz / 54g