Graziano Tendi Sandblasted Nefertiti Dublin w/ Bamboo Handmade Briar Pipe, New

The Italian artisan scene is, today, more vibrant than it has perhaps ever been. While the 20th century was largely dominated by seminal workshops, such as Mastro de Paja and Castello, their many offshoots, such as Ser Jacopo and Caminetto, and the familial dynasties frequently bound up with them, such as the Roveras, the Ascortis, and the Musicos, the 21st century has seen an emergence of networks of solo carvers, whose talents have come to rival both the great workshops of their homeland and their solo counterparts abroad, such as in Denmark or the United States. Graziano Tendi is just such a pipe maker. Having been enamored with tobacco pipes since he was a teenager, he has, for over a decade, been crafting his own pipes under the Tendi name. Pipe Tendi has been a genuine cult hit, even at home in the notoriously competitive Italian pipe scene, so it is our great pleasure to carry them in America for the first time. Though much of Graziano Tendi’s output is focused on traditional shapes in the Anglo-French mold, he does, from time to time, turn to the classics of another tradition, which has had a profound influence on pipe making for around 70 years now. I am, of course, talking about the “Danish,” or “Scandinavian” movement of the post-war years, one whose early designs—to which this Tendi pays homage—launched a thousand ships. This particular rendition is of one of the earliest shapes in the Scandinavian canon, the Nefertiti, designed by Sixten Ivarsson in the 1950s. A tall, narrow chambered, stacked Dublin, the shape is characterized by its unusual “footed” figure, along with a profound lightness, to which this variant’s bamboo shank extension contributes significantly (as was often the case with Ivarsson’s designs). One last touch that makes this homage especially faithful is its slight asymmetry; the story goes that, while Ivarsson was carving a Dublin one day, a small flaw in the briar at the very top of its bowl appeared, which Ivarsson decided to slough off. The rim was thus left at a slight horizontal incline perpendicular to the shank, in a manner that resembled the crown of the ancient Egyptian queen, hence the name.   Details: Length: 6″ / 152.4mm Bowl Width: 0.72 / 18.28mm Bowl Depth: 1.88″ / 47.75mm Weight: 0.8oz / 24g