WO Larsen Pearl Grade Partially Sandblasted Cobra Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

W.O. Larsen was a tobacconist in Copenhagen Denmark. In the 1960s, when Danish-style pipes were becoming highly sought after, thanks to revolutionary pipe-makers such as Sixten Ivarsson, a workshop was set up on the Larsen premises to produce enough high-grade Danish pipes to meet demand. This workshop was staffed by the emerging masters of Danish pipe-making, such as Sven and Teddy Knudsen, Hans ‘Former’ Nielsen, Jess Chonowitsch, Poul Ilsted, and Benni Jorgensen.

While even the lowliest W.O. Larsen pipe was high-end by most standards, the finest (and priciest) pipes bearing the W.O. Larsen name were its “Pearl” grades. Most W.O. Larsen pipes were produced at its workshop by a team of master carvers, each working a different role in shaping, assembling, and finishing them. W.O. Larsen’s most high-grade pipes, however, were each made entirely by one of its most senior craftsmen, either at the W.O. Larsen premises or in their home workshops. For example, Hans “Former” Nielsen, Tonni Nielsen, Teddy Knudsen, and Benni Jorgensen are credited with crafting such pipes at one time or another.

This Pearl grade is one of the most interesting I’ve ever come across. Pearl grades were typically pipes that featured unparalleled straight grain or bird’s-eye grain. Thus, when one looks at Pearl grade pipes (designated by the “smoker in his armchair” stamp beside the W.O. Larsen nomenclature), one finds that they are also either a “Straight Grain” or a “Birds Eyes” grade, and stamped as such. Both the Straight Grain and the Birds Eyes grades were typically graded from “1” to “10” or, if they exceeded even grade 10, they were graded with a “chair” or star stamps, which designated them as Pearls. This pipe, on the other hand, is masterfully carved, but it excels in cross-grain and—most importantly—is partially sandblasted, with those sections exhibiting superior ring grain. In other words, it’s a mixed-finish Pearl grade. It is worth bearing in mind that there were, at one point, sandblasted Straight Grain grades, thanks largely to Benni Jorgensen and the special finishing technique he used for such pipes (and which he continues to use on his own-name pipes today). There have also been examples of other mixed finish Pearls, though these have featured spot-carved rustication or something similar. As such, this is the first partially sandblasted Pearl I’ve come across, whether in person or from the digital “afar.” On the other hand, I see no reason for it not to have attained a Pearl grade. As stated, it is masterfully carved, taking the form of a uniquely asymmetric Danish cobra shape, with excellent grain, both smooth and sandblasted. I would imagine that Benni Jorgensen made it, as the sandblasting technique and choice of top coat is strongly reminiscent of his work. If it isn’t Jorgensen’s work, I’d go with Tonni Nielsen, based on the shaping.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, with an original bowl coating. It

Details:

Length: 5.5″ / 139.7mm

Bowl Width: 0.78 / 19.81mm

Bowl Depth: 1.79″ / 45.46mm

Weight: 3.2oz / 92g