Topic: Caithness Smoking Pipe Millefiori

[BobKegeles]

Here's a cool Caithness Millefiori piece from '88.

It's a largish size 3" across x 2" high, and faceted.

It isn't signed, but does have a transparent plastic Caithness label, and a date cane. The date cane says 1988, but there are also three "0", does that mean anything, or is it simply spacers to complete the circle of the date.

What's kind of cool, is the lampwork pipe, including a wisp of smoke.

Tobacco pipe smoking has pretty much disappeared here in the states, it had a resurgence in the 70's,as cigarette smokers tried to cross over to pipes, to lessen cancer risk. Then of course it turned out that there were very strong links to lip and tongue cancers from pipe smoking.

Does anyone recognize it? Does it have a name? Does anyone know who designed it?

Calling Wolf, here Wolfie, here boy, I have a nice tender lamb for you as a treat, LOL.

Bob

[tropdevin]

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Hi Bob.  It is a well known design to commemorate the Sherlock Holmes centenary of first publication.  There is already a thread on GMB about this design, which was a Caithness Whitefriars product, commissioned by a US wholesaler in 1987.  The thread gives more information about it.

See: http://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,32047.msg173136.html#msg173136

Alan

[BobKegeles]

Thanks Alan,

Between the thread tells me all I need to know, but one question comes up.

I'm assuming the date cane 1988 means it was produced in 1988, but it's featured in the 1987 Reflections.

While I'm guessing the 1987 Reflections would have been published in early 1988, it still would have been to early to feature an item produced in 1988.

Does the date on the cane then refer to the "marketing year" in other words, though the actual production was '87, it was marketed for, and sold in '88, so has an 1988 date?

[tropdevin]

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Hi Bob.  I have seen examples with both year dates in the base....so I guess they started in 1987, and made some as required through into 1988.

Alan

[mildawg]

I've seen a few of these and always wondered what they were.  I thought they were peppers that cracked in half during the making   Now I know better!

[BobKegeles]

I have to say, glancing at it a few times, I didn't recognize the pipe. Then I put down, just happened to be in the correct orientation, and it jumped into my head.

I may have seen it, reasonably quickly since I smoked a pipe in my college years, in the mid '70s.

Though I have to admit, I'm embarrassed to not have identified Sherlock's pipe, it is very distinctive.

I was a Sherlock addict in my teens, even so far as to have a collection of deer stalker caps, that my Mom and Dad picked up for me on a visit to my Mom's ancestral homeland Scotland.  I had 7, so I wore a different one every day to High School, as well as a black wool cape, with red satin lining. As you may guess, I was NOT the most popular kid in High School.

Scariest of all, this is my yearbook photo from 1975.

[mildawg]

May not have been the most popular but I bet you were the most well known!!  The yearbook pic is a classic, for sure.

[Wuff]

I have seen examples with both year dates in the base....so I guess they started in 1987, and made some as required through into 1988.

I can confirm this - I have images of this weight with a 1987 cane in the queue for Scotland's Glass.

[BobKegeles]

out of curiosity, since this was a commissioned piece, would the commissioner, (in this case the US wholesaler) have designed what they want? Or is it more likely that he simply said, give me a Sherlockian w8, and Allan Scott took it from there.

I'm guessing it probably varied depending on the piece, a business that commissioned one for their business, would probably have , at least, sent initial sketches of what they wanted. And then the Caithness designer would have designed the w8, and then sent a schematic and/or drrawing back for approval.

In this case, I'm guessing the wholesaler said, give me a pipe, and then Allan did the design, with back and forths, revising and polishing, until both were happy.

Idle curiosity.

Bob

[tropdevin]

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Hi Bob.  Allan Scott sometimes contributes to this board, so maybe he will give you the answer?

Alan