Bruyères classic or curious

From 1870 the mechanical production of briar pipes developed rapidly. Especially the town of Saint-Claude in the French Jura became an important center where the wooden pipe was created in a streamlined way. In addition, England and Ireland soon became important. Countries such as Denmark and Italy followed later as major producers. Each country is characterized by its own design line.

A wide range of shapes have already been developed before 1900, which, due to a certain degree of timelessness, is regarded as classical shapes. The most famous models are the London, billiard and bulldog, less common are the Dublin, prince or the poker. Other shapes appeal to a certain fashion remaining popular for only a few years, like the Uncle Paul.

The products with the highest prestige are those of Alfred Dunhill Ltd. which appeared on the market for the first time in 1906. Dunhill ordered his pipes at Charatan, where the assignment was that the price was not discussed as long as the quality is optimal. When the products started to catch on, Dunhill set up its own factory, where the company specialized in classic design. Their products were marked with a white dot on the stem.

In addition to the major brands, which closely followed each other in terms of design, there were factories with a more eccentric range of their own aiming at a niche market. In addition to the well-known range of briar products, all kinds of odd and fancy creations were designed. How about the television pipe, the stovepipe, clog pipe or the torpedo. Only a very small group of designs were successful, the others were produced for a short period to fall into oblivion thereafter.