The original calabash pipes are made from the calabash gourd. The African variety is regarded as the best to use, as the European (usually Greek) calabash gourds rarely have the right shape favoured by the pipe makers.
The main part of the calabash pipe is the top, bent stem of the African calabash gourd. The actual bowl, in which the tobacco is smoked, is an insert, often of meerschaum or porcelain. Which is inserted into the hollowed out gourd stem, with the aid of a cork gasket.
A ferrule, of wood, or plastic, or other suitable material, is inserted into the narrow part of the gourd stem. This is to take the bent vulcanite pipe stem which is the part which goes into the mouth of the smoker. If that stem were to be inserted directly into the gourd there would be a good chance of cracking or breaking it.
Some calabash pipes are decorated with silver bands, even a silver cover around the top of the bowl. So we can see that these pipes are pretty labour-intensive. Making them expensive these days.
Calabash pipes smoke cooler and drier than many other types of pipe, because it’s construction means that the smoke passes from the bottom of the actual smoking bowl into the empty space of the gourd beneath, which takes away a lot of the heat and strength of the smoke.
Now, where Sherlock Holmes comes in. The construction of the calabash pipe gives it a low centre of gravity. This allows the smoker to easily hold the pipe in the mouth alone. Actors would take advantage of this property, as it allowed them to depict their character smoking a pipe while leaving the hands free for other “business”. Think of Basil Rathbone and William Gillette, who both played Sherlock Holmes.
In fact Sir Arthur Conan Doyle never actually wrote of Sherlock Holmes smoking a calabash pipe, and Sidney Paget in his illustrations usually had Holmes smoking a long-stemmed (churchwarden) pipe.
We know that Sherlock Holmes himself preferred very strong, harsh tobacco, and would probably never have given the calabash the time of day, due to it’s mellowing effect upon the smoking mixture.
By: Chris Haycock
About the Author:
Chris Haycock is a real fanatic about early detective fiction. Having been hooked as a young boy. He has amassed a large collection of early detective/mystery novels. A particular favourite is Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. If you are also a fan, or just want to know what the fascination is, why not go now to http://www.sherlockandwatson.com
Tags: Calabash Pipes, Deerstalker Hat, Ferrule, Meerschaum, Suitable Material
Many of Sherlock’s habits are reputed to have been emulated from Mr. Doyle’s own habits. Most illustrations of the period show the famous detective and Mr. Doyle puffing away on a long stemmed clay pipe, with his tobacco at his side, kept in an old Persian slipper. In those days, Holmes’ habits of smoking cigars, cigarettes, and pipes were not considered a vice. Holmes always described his habits as bohemian.
Why then, has the Calabash pipe always been related to the famous detective? Because at the time, it was used by actors who portrayed characters that smoked pipes. The Calabash pipe not only can be seen from very far, it is also a great hand prop for delivering poignant lines.
The calabash, or “a calabash” is a vegetable, a form of squash. When ripe, it is used in Asia, African mail order brides and Central America as a culinary delicacy. When mature, or dried, it’s gourd is used as a musical instrument, to transport water or to smoke tobacco.
An old style Calabash pipe is made of a part of the calabash gourd resembling a horn. Inside the wide end of the gourd is inserted a detachable bowl, in the shape of an upside-down bowler hat. A cork gasket keeps the bowl firmly in place. The bowl is usually made of Meerschaum stone, but sometimes we can find the bowl made of porcelain or briar wood.Some of the older Calabash pipes would have a silver cover, but not today. On the narrow end of the gourd, a briar cylinder is inserted, many times covered with a silver band. This is the actual shank, where the tenon of the stem is inserted. This is necessary because the gourd’s material is too fragile to sustain so many insertions and removals of the stem when the pipe needs cleaning. The stem is usually bent, made of vulcanite or lucite.
Tags: Calabash Gourd, Conan Doyle, Culinary Delicacy, Image Of A Man, Persian Slipper
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