Guest Blog by Robert M. Boughton

Member, North American Society of Pipe Collectors
http://www.naspc.org
http://www.roadrunnerpipes.com
http://about.me/boughtonrobert
Photos © the Author, except as noted

“The supreme accomplishment is to blur the line between work and play.”
― Arnold J. Toynbee (1889-1975), British historian

INTRODUCTION
If ever a pipe found its way into my possession and was sheer play and no work to clean up, this black Savinelli Rustic Aged Briar Dublin Churchwarden is it. I bought the long, sleek, exquisite example of the fine Italian pipe crafter’s genuine labor as a perfect addition, not to my own collection but to the growing and diversifying line of brands and styles I sell. Based on the requests I have received for churchwardens in general, as well as my eavesdropping at the local tobacconist I favor, this classic old style appears to be experiencing a comeback in popularity.

Perhaps the shift in supply and demand – as well as the corresponding rise in average churchwarden prices, at my preferred tobacconist and online, compared to the not so distant past – are due in part to the timeless popularity of the classic fantasy novels of J.R.R. Tolkien, starting with “The Hobbit” [1937] and “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy [1954-1955]. This year, in fact, marks the sixtieth anniversary of “LOTR,” and the recent releases of movie versions of both of these can only have spurred interest in the centuries-old pipe shape thanks to the churchwarden-puffing Hobbits, wizards, elves, dwarves and – yes – men. Or maybe the increase in sales and prices is just a sign of greater discernment among pipe enjoyers, and those new to the pleasure in particular, who seek the smoother, cooler satisfaction of a good tobacco’s flavor that the longer shank and bit can provide.

Whatever the cause of this apparent resurgence, I am doing my best to follow the tide by locating and restoring more of this venerable style’s many examples at affordable prices. I already went so far as to clean up a beloved but no longer often enjoyed Clark’s Favorite from my own collection. I bought the lovely pipe several years ago, restored, for about $40 (at which time a quick check online showed the same but new pipe on sale at $69) and sold it to a prospective customer who was bent on a medium-length church or nothing. I still miss the Clark’s Favorite, which I supposed I could always replace for the new price noted above. Today, the same smooth version, with its orange-black acrylic bit, is on sale for $112 compared to the MSRP of $140.

Savinelli for one, seeming to recognize the inconvenience of carrying a long, fixed-bit church about town to enjoy on the go, now offers a nice selection of “Tandem” versions that can be enjoyed at home in their full glory and, when traveling anywhere, with a second short bit. The model shown below, the Tandem Rusticated #112, comes with two completely separate bits – the longer Vulcanite and the shorter acrylic. This particular Tandem, by the way, is now on sale for $108 as opposed to its regular price of $130.

There are, however, still other “churchwardens” with the two bits combined as one, where the entire bit can be twisted off at the shank and the shorter part at the top, with the button, replaced in the shank. Of course, these models carry a higher price tag. Take, for example, this adjustable Cassano smooth billiard, which I bought last night at my tobacconist’s shop for $175. The full churchwarden large poker is 13” in length, and the smaller option is 8½”.

A BIT OF HISTORY
The churchwarden is one of the oldest of pipe shapes. The earliest use was in the Orient, where the bowls were likely made (for the most part to smoke opium) not only of known materials – including amber, ivory, various metals such as brass, different kinds of wood, bone and clay – but also jade and other exotic minerals. The bits (without buttons) often matched the bowls, although combinations of brass, wood, bone and/or ivory were not uncommon.

However, the clay bowl and long wooden shank without a bit was the design adopted and quickly adapted in late 18th or early 19th century Europe. So popular were the original Western World churchwardens that many Eastern European taverns kept supplies on hand for their customers’ use, and the habit of biting off the end of the wood shank for a fresh smoke developed. Until the mid- to late-1800s, clay bowls with wood shanks, open where the bit would now be found, remained the prevailing materials of construction.

As for the origin of the name churchwarden, there are three main theories, given here in reverse order of likelihood: the first, that smoking was permitted almost everywhere, including churches, in those dear lost days, and the long length and design of the pipe allowed it to rest on the pews; the second, that certain individuals, erroneously called churchwardens and trusted with guarding England’s churches in the 1800s, very much enjoyed their pipes and fancied the popular style, and the third, that real churchwardens (who by every official definition were not guards but honorary officers of local parishes or district churches entrusted with administrative and other minor duties) became known for their love of the pipe later named for them.

And contrary to popular myth created by various actors who have performed the role of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s brilliant mystery solving character, Sherlock Holmes, using fancy Gourd Calabashes or sundry churchwardens as props – which falsehood was adored and perpetuated by generations of Sherlockian fans – these are the facts: the shape or material of pipe most often cited by Holmes’ fictional chronicler, Dr. John H. Watson, was cherry wood (six references), followed by several mentions of standard-sized clay pipes and some appearances of briars. You can read the entire “Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” at https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1661/1661-h/1661-h.htm and locate all of them yourselves.

THE CLEANING

To start on an honest note, I only show the few following steps needed to clean this almost-new Savinelli Rustic Dublin Churchwarden beauty for the sake of showing the pipe itself and the ease with which it was spruced up. The bit had no signs whatsoever of having been touched by any hands, much less placed in a mouth and smoked. In other words, its outside was buffed to the highest sheen, as if it came fresh from the factory in Barasso, Italy, in the Varese province. And so I began by running a long, soft cleaner dipped in alcohol once through the 7½” bit, which was all but 3” of the total length, removing the smallest amount of tobacco residue, and again for good measure.

The rim had minor blackening, not part of the stain. I removed that with a quick brush using 1800 micromesh and proceeded to the chamber. Two easy turns of a reamer followed by about 30 seconds of sanding with 200-grit paper and then 320 made the chamber as smooth as it ever was.

For the sake of thoroughness, I attached an otherwise useless small bit with a tenon that fit the shank and retorted the inner shank and chamber. To my amazement, one Pyrex test tube of boiled Everclear came back from the first passage with the lightest shade of brown, and despite about six more tries to make the alcohol darker, the barely tested briar was clean.

Then I noticed a spot on the outer edge of the shank opening that appeared to be smooth and dark red. With a small scrap of super fine steel wool, I probed the narrow strip of briar around the opening and watched it come clean. Below are before and after photos.

I could have left the briar in the excellent shape it already was, but as chance happened, I had just received my order of a new jar of Halcyon II wax, and had to try it out. Therefore, I gave the wood a spin on the clean buffer and with one finger applied a dab of the Halcyon as far as it would spread before adding a smidge more to finish coating the bowl, shank and rim. Setting the wood on a cotton rag, I waited about 10 minutes and again took the duller-looking briar for a fast spin on the clean wheel. Whether or not these steps were necessary, here are the final results.

CONCLUSION
That is all.

SOURCES
(in haphazard order)

http://www.onlineoriental.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=1&Category_Code=14
http://www.quora.com/What-kinds-of-pipes-did-Sherlock-Holmes-smoke-according-to-Sir-Arthur-Conan-Doyles-writings
http://www.sherlockian-sherlock.com/jeremy-brett-churchwarden-pipe.php
http://www.pipedia.org/wiki/Churchwarden_Pipes

Guide to Tobacco Pipes & Pipe Smoking

http://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/new/savinelli/index.cfm?tag=Clark’s%20Favorite
http://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/new/savinelli/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=160492