Stanwell Hand Made 02 Reg Era Sandblasted Opera Estate Briar Pipe, Danish Estates

Description

Stanwell is one of Denmark’s most celebrated and enduring pipe companies, having been founded by Poul Nielsen shortly after the second world war. Over the last six decades, Stanwell has established itself as both a leader in innovative Danish design and for producing well-priced pipes with precision construction and engineering. Many of its designs were created for the company by iconic pipe-makers in the Scandinavian scene, such as Sixten Ivarsson, Anne Julie, Jess Chonowitsch, and Tom Eltang.

The “02” was one of Stanwell’s earliest shapes upon taking up the “Stanwell” (formerly Kyringe) name, and was indeed one of the very first designed for the company by Sixten Ivarsson. In fact, at the time of its debut around the early 1950s, Stanwell offered two concurrent series of pipes (some of which even shared shape numbers); the more modern “Hand Cut” series, and the very traditional “Standard” series, the latter having been the bread and butter up until that point. This one is, of course, from the Hand Cut series, though even by todays standards it is a rather odd shape. It is an opera rendition—which, at the time, was not out of the ordinary—but a very strange one, with a unique, slightly “warped” looking saddle-fantail mouthpiece. Ivarsson is quite notable for the multitude of unusual stem cuts he produced during his career, with many being incorporated into his Stanwell shapes, though they remain unconventional even among contemporary artisan pipes. As for dating, this one looks to have an uncrowned “S” stamp, which would put it in the early to mid-1950s period of manufacture, though it is possible the crown was effaced, as there is some minor fading at the top of the “S,” which would put it a little later. It’s an early piece, either way, as the shape was ultimately discontinued in the 1960s and replaced altogether in the 1970s.

The condition is fair. Rim darkening and stem slightly over-buffed.

Details:

Length: 6″ / 152.4mm

Bowl Width: 1.01 / 25.65mm (front to back)

Bowl Depth: 1.58″ / 40.13mm

Weight: 1.2oz / 36g