Old collection rediscovered

25 settembre 2024

Among collectors, the name Jean-Léo sounds like a legend from times gone by. Jean-Léo from Brussels was already active as a collector and dealer in clay pipes from the 1950s. Later, he published an annual sales catalogue with special clay pipes but also literature on the subject, including tobacciana. Besides, he kept a collection himself, which he rarely showed to anyone. After his death in 2017, no one knew what happened to this private collection. A few weeks ago, we were approached by his heiress. We bought the 850 pipes of this passionate enthusiast from her. Some of them were published in his famous book La pipe en terre française! Each pipe that adds information will be included in our reference collection, and as usual they will soon be available to view on our website as well. As a tribute to Jean-Léo who inspired so many!

Research on Surinamese pipes published

12 settembre 2024

Digging up Gouda pipes in our former colony, Suriname, is already a rare occurrence. Now that an entire collection of these finds has reached our museum, we can study for the first time what brands, qualities, and types were shipped to the West. The results have now been published in an article on our website. Never before has anyone been able to say anything meaningful about smoking habits in the colonies, which makes this article ground-breaking. What we know from scarce drawings is that plantation owners enjoyed smoking a long Gouda pipe. The finds indeed confirm this, but the slaves were heavy smokers as well.
Follow this link: https://pipemuseum.nl/en/article/surinaamse-vondsten-openbaren-rookcultuur-in-de-west