|
Date: |
|
Description: | An incomplete moulded clay tobacco pipe bowl and stem of Early Modern dating (19th Century AD).The clay tobacco pipe has been moulded from a white pipeclay.The pipe fragment consists of an almost complete bowl, and part of the stem. The bowl has been moulded with a 'Skull and Cross bones' symbol on both sides. The skull part is sub circular in design and is missing the lower jaw. The teeth are indicated by several vertical lines. The eyes are sub circular in shape and the nose triangular; all three are recessed. The cross bones part of the design consists of two 'long bones' curved at the end and crossing at the mid point. The bones curve inwards. More decorative moulding is present along the mould seam line, with a diagonal leaf pattern. The rim of the bowl has been damaged. The base of the bowl exhibits the remains of a broken spur. A possible maker's mark is present on the left hand side of the stem, close to the bowl. The maker's mark consists of two letters or numbers, possibly '95'.The clay pipe measures 38.93mm high, 54.65mm in length and 23.92mm wide. the damaged base of the spur measures 8.83mm in length. The bore diameter is 2.21mm wide and the stem diameter is 8.32mm. Ut weighs 14.2 grams. The bowl style is similar to that of Oswald's type 24.Comment from Dr. David Higgins (Clay Pipe Specialist): The pattern number (95) on the left hand side of the stem identifies this as a product from the Pollock factory in Manchester. This business was founded by Edward Pollock in 1879 and operated under three successive generations until its sale in 1990. A catalogue of c1906 illustrates this design as 'No 95 - Death & Glory. C. Cutty' - which probably means the design name is 'Death & Glory' (presumably a reference to the 17th Lancers, whose motto was 'Death or Glory') and that it was a 'common cutty', i.e., one that would have been produced amongst their standard range of decorative products (a cutty was a short-stemmed pipe for everyday use). Many of the original moulds were still being used at Pollock's in 1990 (and still are by the company who purchased the business) so this example could date to anywhere from c1880-1990 - although a late C19th or early C20th date is perhaps most likely.Reference:Oswald, A 1975 Clay Pipes for the Archaeologist, British Archaeol Rep 14, Oxford
Original Image | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | http://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/r... | Go to resource |
|
|