Benson & Hedges (1909) Smooth Cased Billiard Estate Briar Pipe, English Estates

And now for something completely different… Well, not completely, but it is different. These days, Benson & Hedges is predominantly known for a different kind of nicotine delivery technology but, way back when, the company did dabble in pipes. As far as I know, B&H didn’t manufacture their own pipes, with this being done for them by major pipe companies in London, such as Comoy’s and Orlik. But, they did manufacture silverware. More specifically, they manufactured silverware in the form of smoking accessories, which included silver mountings. The bowl for this Benson & Hedges pipe will likely have come from a dedicated pipe manufacturer, but the sterling silver army mount was turned by Benson & Hedges’ silverware arm, Alfred Paget Hedges (hence the APH maker’s mark). The pipe is cased, with two stems that appear to be a synthetic material. It’s possible that the stems are Bakelite (patented 1909, the same year this pipe was made), but they could also be celluloid. For a pipe that’s over 100 years old, the condition is pretty good. The rim shows some darkening, a few spots of char, and a slight over-reaming, and one of the stems is slightly nicked at the tenon end. There’s also some light handling marks. A remarkable find nonetheless.   Details: Length: 4.7″ / 119.3mm Bowl Width: 0.66 / 16.76mm Bowl Depth: 1.21″ / 30.73mm Weight: 0.5oz / 16g