Very Rare Antique French, Louis Fiolet, St Omer, Early Jacob Pipe No. 726, c1860

Very Rare Antique French, Louis Fiolet, St Omer, Early Jacob Pipe No. This pipe came from the Trevor Barton collection, a world renowned collector of tobacciana, who died in 2008, he had been amassing the collection for more than 50 years. Trevor Barton received the rare honour of being inducted into the’Academie Internationale de la Pipe. The Fiolet company and was started around 1764 in Saint Omer by Thomas Fiolet, quickly becoming successful. In 1789 there were no less than 500 people working and in 1823 there were 600. In 1860 the factory was producing more than ten million pipes a year. In 1892 Maximillien Junior’s son-in-law Georges Audebert took over the company and after he died in 1897 the company was managed by his wife until 1921, when it closed its doors. The design of the Jacob pipe did not appear to have come about all at once, it was idea that developed over time, but Jacob. Pipes all have the same design in principle: a man’s face with moustache, beard and turban. As far as can be traced, the first step was taken by the Fiolet company in Saint-Omer. Around 1860, this company came up with a pipe with a bearded man’s head with a turban that, although it strongly resembled other Turkish heads or exotics, already had the specific beard and headdress of the Jacob design. The design was given form number 726 and it would become one of the most popular and most copied pipes. This early creation is not yet a mature Jacob pipe. For example, the inscription is still missing from the turban, although the two tassels are present, they are less conspicuous than they would become. The turban has two hanging flaps at the bottom, which will later disappear from the design. For those familiar with the Jacob pipe, the undecorated lower back of the beard also points to the design not yet being fully realised, the emphatic rectangular text shields will appear on this some years later. This pipe is from the very early first creation of the Jacob pipe, it has been molded with design number 726 on the right, within the same styled frame used to display the makers name on the left, which reads: L. The pipe has rich colourful enamel glazed accents to the turban and tassels, with white accents highlighting the luxurious beard, and striking white and black eyes. He is a wonderful character. The pipe is in wonderful used condition, creating a rich dark patina, he has a small chip to his nose. The pipe measures approx. 9cm by 4.5cm by 7cm. A rare collectable pipe, that would make a fantastic addition for a discerning collector. Please see pictures for more details. Recycled packaging is used as much as possible. I will pack and weigh the items together and get the best possible price that I can, sometimes weight or value might dictate that I send multiple parcels to get a better value for you.