Longchamps Canadian

Purchased at the same time as the Ben Wade and the Tyrolean. The previous owner had quit pipe smoking to please his new bride, and this was one of his oldest pipes. It was originally purchased new in France in 1951.

Longchamps is a French pipe company that makes pipes that are covered with some sort of animal hide. This one is covered with pigskin. I've also seen some that were jacketed with horse-hide including the hair, which to me looked kind of strange.

This one took significant cleaning and a couple of salt treatments. Even now, it is not a pipe I smoke very often, but then I don't usually select straight pipes and I haven't really gotten this one re-seasoned in the last several years since I've owned it. It will remain part of my collection as an example of a leather-covered Longchamps pipe.

Charatan Canadian Selected

Sometimes you just get lucky. (Click to enlarge for both photos).


Found in an eBay lot of otherwise serviceable but unremarkable pipes was this bitless Charatan in the Canadian shape. I cleaned it up inside and out, but have not yet bothered to give it a buff and wax. I might give the rim a little more attention and see if I can make it sparkle.

Nomenclature on the top of the shank is "CHARATAN'S MAKE" over "LONDON, ENGLAND" and "SELECTED" just beneath that.

According to this article by Ivy Ryan, the Selected grade was second from the top, eclipsed only by the Supreme. Unfortunately this one no longer had the original bit, which may have had further nomenclature on it. Even without the bit, this is probably the most valuable pipe in my collection, and is yet another one that I am looking forward to getting fitted for a new bit.

NOTE: I first read the linked article on Charatan pipes some time ago and saved it to my computer. I don't recall where I originally saw it, but found this newer link just now. I did not know there was a Pipedia.