Smoke signals

COLLECTING: Pipe smoking may no longer be in vogue... but pipes are. John Vincent reports on a haul of meerschaums.

OWLS champion David Bryant was one; so was Andrew Cruickshank (from Dr Finlay’s Casebook), Eric Morecambe, Maigret star Rupert Davies and Yorkshiremen JB Priestley, Harold Wilson and Freddie Trueman. Yes, all were pipe smokers.

Of course, the most famous of them all was a fictional character, Sherlock Holmes, indelibly linked with the familiar curved stem of a calabash pipe made from the gourd of a tropical vine.

Actually, he didn’t smoke one like that in the books by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; the curved stem was a theatrical device so the actor playing him could rest it on his chest while talking.

But while pipe smokers are now an endangered species, pipes and their accoutrements can be worth decent money. Even 30 years ago, some rarities, such as 17th century Dutch fruitwood, 18th century Kelsterbach pottery and Victorian carved meerschaum examples were fetching four figures.

Now a magnificent collection of pipes and associated items is to surface at Special Auction Services of Newbury, Berkshire. In a series of sales starting in September, some 3,000 pieces will be offered with an overall estimate of £80,000-£100,000.

The amazing haul was assembled by a London doctor who has never smoked.

Many of the pipes are made of meerschaum – meaning “foam of the sea” in German, a soft, white clay-like material consisting of hydrated magnesium silicate found in Asia Minor.

Because it’s so soft, it can be easily carved into (sometimes erotic) shapes and takes on a more dramatic appearance when stained by smoke.

Highlights of the first sale include a set of six unusual 19th century smoking chairs, with leather seats, compartments for smoking materials and backs carved with crossed pipes, tobacco pouches and bundles of cigars tied with ribbons. They are estimated at £1,000-£1,500.

Other guide prices include:

Novelty pipe with shell surround reportedly owned by three-times prime minister Stanley Baldwin in the 1930s (£300-£500).

Sherlock Holmes is indelibly linked with the curved stem of the calabash pipe.