November 28, 2016

Nothing tops Groningen

All the way in the North-East of The Netherlands lies the province of Groningen with its capital (also called) Groningen. Very handy when I had geographical tests in primary school, never got it wrong. Groningen is an old city, once a member of the German Hanseatic League, with a rich tobacco history, of which sadly little is left.. On a cold, windy but dry Saturday Ellen and I embarked upon a journey to the North. For most Dutch people Groningen feels like the other end of the civilized world. Since we are already living halfway The Netherlands for us it just was a 1.5 hour ride with the train. Before we went I already looked up (cultural) places to visit and found them: the Groninger Museum, the Universiteits Museum and the Noordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum.

Art by Joost van den Toorn

We started at the Groninger Museum since it was near the beautiful train station. Just look up if you are there, then you will know what I mean. The entry-fee for the museum was cheaper than normal. It turned out they were between expositions. Luckily there was still enough to see. The museum tends towards modern art (normal-wise not my favourite) but to my delight they had some interesting pieces. I especially had to laugh when I saw some sculptures made by Joost van Den Toorn. I mean, a statue on birds legs of the naked upside down part of a woman with a big cross put in the vagina is bound to bring a smile on my face. There also were some older paintings and like always I did my game of “spot the smoking pipe”. And I found some!

After a warm cup of tea and a cappuccino for Ellen at one of the many coffee-shops in the city centre (no not that kind of coffee-shop you potheads..) we slowly walked to the Universiteits Museum. The entrance lies a bit hidden but luckily Ellen did not have her eyes in her pocket and spotted it. The best thing about this museum is that it is free! That always makes this miserly Dutchman happy. If you are looking for mind boggling art, don’t come here. The museum has an array of objects like medical specimens, models to scientific instruments and ethnological objects. It also has the consultation room of Aletta Jacobs, the first female student in the Netherlands, the first female doctor and the first woman that obtained a doctorate. The most impressive was the anatomy room, where anatomical preparations are organized as an anatomical theatre. A kind of creepy but certainly interesting.

Noordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum

The last museum we visited was the Noordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum. It is located in one of the most beautiful medieval buildings in Groningen, a big merchants-house with a Gothic façade dating back to the 15th century. Until 1 January 2011 it housed the Niemeyer Tobacco-museum. Sadly, in 2010 it was decided to close the tobacco-museum because Niemeyer withdrew their funding for it. It did not fit in British American Tobacco’s (owner of Niemeyer) policies for the future of the company.. Without their funding it was not feasible to keep it open. The collection of the museum has been split up. Articles that the museum had received as a gift or were on loan from people have been, as much as possible, returned. Other important pieces became part of the own collection of the Noordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum or went to other musea. Most of the then remaining items have been sold at an auction at Christie’s in Amsterdam. The few articles that remained are kept in the archives of the Noordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum for safe-keeping. But to my delight I discovered that quite a few of smoking related items were exhibited.

Het wapen van Rotterdam

But first a small history about tobacco in Groningen. Once upon a time there were many smaller and larger factories in Groningen which produced chewing or smoking tobacco. During the years a number of them were swallowed by Theodorus Niemeyer, but most companies threw the towel into the ring after a short or longer time. Now once well-known names like Lieftinck, Gruno, Kranenburg and Koning only live forth in memory or on commemorative stones on façades. In 1854 there were (according to an old address-book) 28 tobacco manufacturers in Groningen under which F. Lieftinck and Th. Niemeijer. Both had been active for only a short while. Theodorus Niemeijer started in 1848, after he took over the wholesale business and shop “Het wapen van Rotterdam” from his father.

Gruno tobacco factory at the Winschoterkade, ca. 1926

In 1849 (or 1820, I don’t know precisely..) Franciscus Lieftinck lets his sons, Franciscus jr. and Jan Harmannus, lay the first brick for a tobacco factory in the Raamstraat. Later, in 1893, a bigger one called “Pakhuis De Nijverheid” was build. Franciscus jr. and Ipoje Kranenburg marry 2 De Witt sisters. They are not the only tobacco manufacturers who got mutually related. Also Th. Niemeijer got his (second) wife from the tobacco environment. His marriage to Tettje Heckman offered him the opportunity to take over the business from her deceased nephew Hayo Willem Heckman in 1874. The tobacco industry grew and the manufacturers were erecting new company buildings. E.F. Rost was building a cigar factory and drying room on the corner of the Eeldersingel and Paterwoldseweg. Niemeijer also expanded by taking over the company of J. Swaagman in 1887 and by building a big warehouse at the corner of the Rotterdammerstraatje and the Nieuwe Kerkhof. In 1898 tobacco manufacturer Jan Gruno does exactly the same at the Winschoterkade. Gruno, just like Lieftinck and Niemeijer, was a company that went from father to son. Father Jan Gruno sr. began in “De Blauwe Haan” at the Damsterdiep as a merchant and tobacco-carver. Son Jan jr. moved the company to the Winschoterkade and his sons John Henry and Julius managed the business from 1921.

1922, Theodorus Niemeijer factory, Paterwoldseweg

Companies that did not stay in the family sometimes kept their company or brand-name. This way names of tobacco manufacturers Pieter Koning and Ipoje Kranenburg live on after the take-over by R.A.J. Loot. He starts in a building in the Oosterstraat in 1887 in which first T.B. Kolk and subsequently P. Koning made tobacco. After Loot took over the company of Kranenburg he used the name of Koning as well as the name of Kranenburg for his tobacco factory. The new company building “De Tabaksplant” at the W.A. Scholtenstraat got a tiled painting with the P. Koning name on it. Niemeijer was one of the first to make cigarettes in 1909. At first in the new factory building at the Paterswoldseweg but later, in 1918, from the old Noack meat-factory at the Emmasingel. Despite that this factory closed in 1929, Niemeijers expansion at the Paterwoldseweg continued. Amongst other things the acquisition of Lieftinck in 1932 added to this.

1966, Theodorus Niemeyer factory, Paterwoldseweg

In the 1930’s and during WWII several tobacco companies called it quits. For Gruno the liberation of Groningen city meant the end. This because the Germans entrenched themselves in the high building, so it was destroyed and burned by Canadian artillery fire. Niemeyer (like it is spelled today) was the only tobacco manufacturer from Groningen that remained, but it was no longer a family-company. First British company Gallaher became the owner in 1973 and in 1990 it was sold to Rothmans (who also owned Gruno), who have been bought by British Amercian Tobacco in 1999.

Back to the Noordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum. When we had hung up our coats and paid the very reasonable entrance fee we headed for the basement where there was an exposition about 100 years of advertisement by some Groninger companies. One of the first things I saw were beautiful billboards from Niemeyer where you could recognize art movements like Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) and Art Deco. Just walking through the old building is an experience in itself. If you are larger than about 1.70m, watch out for your head! Back in the day the people were not very large.. If you follow the designated route you are being led to an array of rooms. Everywhere bits and pieces of smoking related items are displayed like nice old snuffboxes from Scandinavia and beautifully decorated clay pipes.

*Drools* Too bad of the wire-mesh..

In a corner of one of the bigger rooms I discovered a cell, closed off by wire mesh, with inside all kinds of vintage Dutch (pipe) tobacco packs of brands like Rode Ster, Friesche Baaitabak and Friesche Heeren Baai. I don’t like stealing but if I had a wire-cutter then… Another great find were 2 smoking chairs from 1870. On such a piece of furniture you don’t sit normal. You sit backwards with your arms on the backrest that can be opened. There are 2 compartments in which one can put tobacco. Also the woodcarving on the back is very nicely executed. In conclusion I would like to say: visit that museum!

Tabaksspeciaalzaak Homan

What I also would like to visit was a tobacco shop. Unfortunately there are not many left in Groningen.. Sadly the oldest tobacconist, A-Kerk, closed its doors last year. Really a shame because the store-building dates back from 1445 and since 1916 a tobacconist has been active there. But a very good alternative is Tabaksspeciaalzaak Homan at the edge of the old city centre. For 54 years the old, now sadly deceased, owner Klaas Homan sold his smoking wares there. Now a young team is active and I think they are doing a fine job. Immediately when I entered the shop I was friendly greeted. I explained that I was a smoking pipe / pipe tobacco blogger and asked if I could snap some pictures. No problem at all. The assortment of the store was impressive! All in The Netherlands available pipe-tobaccos, pipes of brands like Peterson, Vauen and Big Ben, short- and longfiller cigars, cigarettes, hookahs and all kinds of smoking requisites.

Rode Ster

I asked the good looking female shop assistant, who turned out to be in charge of the team, if I could have a better look at the pipes. A glass panel was opened so I could take some pipes in my hand. They had some nice Petersons but I managed to restrain myself. I asked the girl what her best selling pipes were. “Surprisingly not Big Ben (a Dutch brand of course) but Vauen is our high seller.” We walked towards the pipe-tobacco corner and she expressed that she was sad that the Scandinavian Tobacco Group are discontinuing several brands. “We have many pipe-smokers here that just like 1 brand and soon we will have to disappoint some of them..” Of course here I also asked what brand was the high seller and it was W.O. Larsen Golden Dream and the Troost tobaccos. Suddenly my eye fell on a pouch of a long discontinued (well, at least a couple of years now) brand that I saw earlier that day in the Noordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum: Rode Ster. It was Homan’s last and probably one of the last in general. So I bought it. Rode Ster was a brand made by Niemeyer and was already popular in the 1930’s. It consisted of Virginia, Maryland and some burley.

Schweinehund pizza, best I ever had!

Outside the store I met Ellen again, she had not gone inside with me. It was time to relax and have a drink. Nearby was a brewery and I was yearning for a good glass of dark beer. On the lower floors of the Martinus Brouwerij the beer is brewed and on the upper floor you can drink it. There a hip café is located which even had a vinyl turntable that played relaxing smooth jazz. I can recommend their brown beer and pale ale! Around 5 o’clock our bellies began to rumble, dinnertime. My friend Jaap who is living in Groningen now for several years recently had opened a pizzeria there: Lux. But it is not just a regular pizzeria, no, everything is 100% fresh and handmade. No fat soggy big chain pizzas there. Also pretty unique, they have vegetarian and vegan pizzas and pastas. I did not tell Jaap that we were coming so he was pretty (pleasantly) surprised to see us. We had not see each other for some time so while he was cooking and baking we chatted along. I ordered the so called delicious Schweinehund pizza. Tomato sauce, Gouda cheese, onion, ham, salami, bacon, roast beef and a baked egg on top of a golden baked crispy yet chewy hand-knead dough bottom. In all honesty, the best pizza I ever had. Thank you Jaap! With our stomachs filled we thanked Jaap and his charming girlfriend Lana and went for one last drink at an Irish Pub, where I had some tasty Kilkenny beer and Ellen a red wine. Content and happy we toasted on what had been a great day in Groningen.

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October 25, 2014

A tobacconist and a wedding in Breda

Breda harbour

On a surprisingly warm October day Ellen and I headed towards to one of the major cities in the province of North-Brabant: Breda. The reason being that my long time colleague Loes was getting married! She and I go back quite some years, she started in the German department of our company and later moved to my department; marketing and communication. Privately I semi-jokingly called her the “iron maiden” because at 31 years old she had not even kissed a guy.. “Try internet-dating!” I said “Perhaps you meet someone, who knows?” Nonono, not her style, blahblahblah.. Until I heard she had a couple of dates with a man and things seemed to go well. “How did you meet him?” I asked. Loes replied with a red face: “Ehmm, through internet..” After that the fresh couple made haste, in just 2 years time both of their houses were sold, a new one was bought, they started living together and got engaged. So the announcement of a marriage in Breda did not surprise me. Good, I thought, an excellent reason to take a day off, stroll through the city and pay a visit to one of the better tobacco shops of The Netherlands: De Compagnie.

We arrived in Breda at the end of the morning and easily found a parking garage near the old city centre. It was still quiet in the streets until we encountered the weekly market. We did not feel like walking past all the stands so we decided to look for a place to get some coffee. In the heart of the market was a terrace in the shades where we sat down. While Ellen ordered cappuccino for her and a coffee for me I filled up my Dunhill cherrywood with some new Bulldog Roper’s Roundels. Aaahh.. I just love to sit on a terrace on a sunny day with pleasant company, a good drink and a good pipe.

Proost!

After we finished our drinks we went for a stroll through the city. Ellen had to shop for some clothes (women…) but that was the price I had to pay for our later visit to De Compagnie. Luckily she soon found a nice pink ensemble in which she looked dashing. When we came out of the store our bellies were grumbling, time to have some lunch. We walked towards the Grote Kerk (Big Church), the most important monument and landmark of Breda. Alongside the big building we found a café with big wooden benches in front of it where we sat down. I looked at the menu and yummie, they had some bock-beers! So I ordered a Texels bock, for Ellen a glass of rosé and for the both of us something to eat. By the way, my pipe with the Bulldog Roper’s Roundels was still going strong! It still amazes me how long this kind of tobacco lasts.

De Compagnie

Also beside the church tobacco shop De Compagnie, run by John Bodar and his wife, is located in a stately building. Well, tobacco shop.. They have more than that. De Compagnie sells the (for me) classic trinity: tobacco, (home roasted) coffee and tea. Which was the reason that Ellen came along with me. Normally she prefers to go somewhere else when I visit a tobacconist because it is just not her thing. When you enter the large store the coffee and tea products are on the left. To the right you see all kinds of cigars, cigarettes, pipe tobacco, pipes and water-pipes. In the back of the shop is a cigar climate-room with a bit alongside it a small but classy smokers lounge.

As far as pipes go De Compagnie has a vast assortment, one of the larger I have seen so far in The Netherlands. From cheap to expensive, lots of brands and what I really liked were the many meerschaum and clay pipes. Normally one does not see many of those pipes in tobacco stores here in The Netherlands. But De Compagnie even still has some clay pipes from no longer made brands like Zenith. I knew that before because at the beginning of this year I bought a stunning Zenith Sultan clay-pipe at their online shop. Owner John Bodar even send a lighter and a nice postcard of Breda with it!

John Bodar

Talking about owner John Bodar, when I was looking at the pipes assortment he came to me. An elderly, calm and thoughtful man. We shook hands and started talking about his business, tobaccos and pipes and he showed me some of his wares. To my relief it soon became clear that he knew what he was talking about, a man who knows the products he is selling. This because I’ve encountered several tobacconists in The Netherlands who barely knew what they were talking about.. After we chatted for a while I looked over my shoulder and saw Ellen patiently sitting on a chair. She had bought some (surprisingly) tasty Twinings green tea and Ethiopian coffee and was waiting for me to stop talking with Mr Bodar. So I rounded off the conversation and bought a tin of Planta Danish Black Vanilla (ignore the bad reviews, it is good stuff) and a bottle of liquid for my Lampe Berger. I asked Mr Bodar if I could send him some more questions per mail. Of course that was possible and below are those questions and his answers.

1. Can you tell me something about the history of the store?
In 1935 my grandparents started a shop in comestibles with coffee, tea and tobacco in the Nieuwe Haagdijk in Breda. The shop ran well and was moved to the Karrestraat. Obviously my mother assisted them in the store. In 1900 my great-grandparents had a cigar-factory in Den Bosch. There their son (my grandfather) began a cigar-store on the market. Unfortunately in the 1930’s the factory was closed because it could not compete with the grand-scale manufacturing of larger companies. After WWII my father started a pipe-wholesale with amongst others the brands Hilson and Speedway. The parents of my mother were regular customers and this way he met my mother. After that my father settled in our current building, Torenstraat 15 in Breda. My grandparents decided to sell their store at the Karrestraat in 1955. Their stock and customers were taken over by my parents who converted the Torenstraat building to a shop. In 1989 my wife and I took over the store, expanded the assortment with coffee and tea and changed the name from “Het Pijpenhuis” to “De Compagnie”. The following years the store was expanded and we started with roasting our own coffee in 2003.

2. What are your most sold pipe-tobaccos?
The most sold pipe-tobaccos here are the Havezaethe series.

3. What are your most sold pipes?
Brands that are mostly sold here are Chacom, Peterson and Big Ben.

4. Do a lot of tourists/casual visitors visit your store or do you have a lot of regular customers?
About one third are regular customers who pay a visit about once a month. One third are also regular customers but they come here a few times a year. The last third are tourists, mostly from The Netherlands, who pay a day-visit to Breda and come to take a look what we have got here in the store.

5. Do you notice anything of the anti-smoking feelings/laws? Does it harm your sales?
The laws have a big impact on smoking in general. Especially the prohibition of smoking in ones workplace makes it for many pipe smokers no longer possible to enjoy their pipe during their work. However, it is a trend that people are more aware of what they smoke, less but better.

6. What are your favourite pipes and tobacco when you smoke yourself?
I regularly smoke from 5 pipes. My favourites are a straight Davidoff and a bend Chacom. I like to try out different tobaccos and rotate them. In the earlier days I was a lover of English blends with latakia, my current favourite is the John Aylesbury Premium Blend.

7. Any last words to readers?
Smoke consciously and enjoy it, do not smoke out of habit. Rather buy one good pipe than 2 lesser and regularly take care of it.

The time had come to go to the wedding of Loes when we walked away from De Compagnie. It was held in the old city-hall at the market place which was cleared at that time. Well, only the smell of fish remained.. Loes and her soon to be husband Martijn arrived in a beautiful white old-timer which stopped just before the old city-hall. As they stepped out of the car I could see that she looked amazing and was positively beaming. Once inside the wedding-ceremony started and I would not have missed it for the world. Nice and warm speeches from the civil servant and friends, of course lots of (happy) tears and the most important: they both said “yes”. As a wedding present for the new couple I was thinking of giving them a pipe. Not a normal one, but a wedding-pipe.

For a long time the tobacco pipe had a special meaning about making love, betrothal and marriage. For example, it was a good sign if the lover with his first visit to a girl got offered a pipe and a coal. If he the next time got offered the same pipe it meant he was accepted as a lover. In the 19th century up until WWII in The Netherlands, and especially the provinces of Groningen, Drenthe, Friesland and Overijssel, it was a tradition that the groom was offered a Gouda pipe, the wedding-pipe. Per region the name was different: Bruidegomspijp, bruigomspijp, bruidspijp, bruiloftspijp, breugmanspiep and bruurmanspiepe. This is old-fashioned, but the symbolism of the smoking of the wedding-pipe stands for the subservience of the woman to the man. She has to keep the coals in the fire burning so that man can lit the pipe at any given moment. Besides that the pipe is also a symbol of conjugal fidelity. If the pipe breaks then there surely will be a break-up in marriage..

Wooden cabinet with wedding-pipe inside

The wedding pipe had a head decorated with an altar of fire, hearts or the image of a married couple. The rest of the pipe was decorated with paper ribbons, garlands and flowers. This creative work was done by the bride and/or her relatives or friends. At the end of the tradition this job often was outsourced to the wife of the local carpenter. Her husband made a beautiful decorated wooden cabinet with a glass window in which the pipe could rest after the wedding.

Picture of an old wedding

The customs around the wedding pipe were not a fixed thing, there were variations from region to region. At the evening of the wedding the pipe was presented by a sister of the bride (or the wife of the local carpenter) to the bride. Nervously this rhyme was uttered by her: “Gelijk naar ’s lands gebruik, reik ik u deze pijp. Versierd met lint en rozen, tabak door u gekozen.” (According to the country’s traditions, I offer you this pipe. Decorated with ribbon and roses, tobacco chosen by you). The bride filled the pipe with tobacco, lighted it up and blew some smoke in the face of her husband. Then she gave the pipe to him and he kept smoking out of it for the rest of the evening. During the next weeks he only smoked the pipe six more times after which it was put in the wooden cabinet in the living room. It also occurred that the offering of the pipe did not happen on the wedding day, but on the Sunday preceding it during the period of betrothal. After the announcement in church the family of the bride ate at the family of the groom. On the next Sunday the meal was enjoyed at the family of the bride which consisted of rice with raisins and prunes. That day the wedding-pipe was also offered to the groom.

Klaas, Ellen and myself eating

Sadly Loes and her husband are fanatical non-smokers so I soon abandoned the idea of giving a wedding pipe. After the ceremony Ellen and I walked to the car. Dinner would not be served in Breda but in Sliedrecht, where pipe-smoking friend Klaas and his lovely wife Yvonne live. Klaas wanted to meet Ellen for quite some time so this was the perfect opportunity. We already agreed that dinner would exist of Chinese take-out which is almost a tradition now because of my earlier visits to Klaas. Needless to say we all had a great evening, the Chinese dishes tasted great and the after-dinner pipe even better. Klaas (and of course Yvonne), thank you once again very much for the food and the special gift!

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January 18, 2014

Dutch Clay Pipes

Clay pipes and my beloved Brullende Leeuw tobacco

Windmills, tulips, wooden-shoes, cheese, weed and red light districts are all things which are typical Dutch. What is also quintessential Dutch is the clay pipe. In my blogpost Dutch Tobacco Trade I already told that in the 17th century smoking became more and more common in The Netherlands. Since the modern day cigar and cigarette had not been invented yet there was no smoking without pipes.

In the second half of the 16th century pottery makers in England succeeded in making usable pipes from clay. Especially English places like Winchester, Bristol, Chester, Hull and London seemed to have played an important role in the development of the clay pipe as an instrument of smoking. Contacts between England and the Dutch Republic did go over water at the end of the 16th century. That is why the Dutch harbours first came into contact with tobacco. This image is confirmed by archaeological discoveries.

Soldier smoking

At the beginning of the 17th century the Dutch Republic fought out the 80-years’ war with Roman-Catholic Spain. Many English mercenaries fought in the army of Maurits. When in 1609 the 12 years’ truce was announced a lot of English soldiers became unemployed. Many of them resorted to the profession they executed in England. Also because of James I many English pipe makers fled to my country. This had two reasons, first James I was known for his disgust of tobacco, of which his son was addicted to. In a writing called “A Counter Blast to Tobacco” he pointed out the dangers of tobacco to his subjects (today this is still being done by many governments). Second he prosecuted puritans because of their faith. It were the humble craftsmen like pipe-makers and weavers that belonged to this group. So they fled to the liberal Netherlands and continued their craft here. This way they introduced the smoking of a pipe in the Dutch Republic and more important, they taught the local inhabitants how to make clay pipes.

Around 1610 the first pipe-production slowly starts in Amsterdam and Leiden, nothing more than little companies in the domestic circle. It was necessary that the whole family helped in order to make enough money for a frugal meal. In the next decade the industry will spread to places like Gouda, Enkhuizen, Rotterdam, Delft and Schoonhoven. After this the craft expanses further across the country to Zwolle, Deventer and Middelburg until around 1640 there are also pipe-makers situated in Groningen and Maastricht. But the most well known place was and still is Gouda.

“Achter de vismarkt, Gouda” The place where William Baernelts lived

The first English pipe-maker who arrived in Gouda, having fled England because of his faith, was William Baernelts in 1608. He declared he was born in Bromyard (near Stratford) and that his profession was stonecutter. In 1617 William started with the craft of pipe-maker. Until 1637 it were the English pipe-makers who had the lead. It was not until 1640 that the Gouda pipe-makers surpassed the English. Around 1640 the Gouda pipe-makers filed a permission to establish a guild which excluded their English colleagues. In 1665 this guild had 180 members and in 1666 the first Gouda pipe-market was held. After that the fabrication of pipes in Gouda really took off. In 1749 there were 349 pipe-factories and half of the Gouda inhabitants had a job in those. Also the area of distribution was no longer limited to the region or the country. Today Dutch clay pipes are still found around the world.

Evolution of clay pipes

The shape of the pipes changed during the years. The walls of the bowl and the mouthpiece of the clay pipe became thinner because of better clay and an improved method of fabrication. The bowl also got bigger because the price of tobacco went down. Wished that was still the case! In the early years the pipes were short and pretty hot to smoke. Therefore the mouthpiece became longer and the pipe became more pleasant to smoke. Each pipe had certain trademarks that were registered with the result that today it is still possible to track who made the pipe and when it was made. We can distinguish these trademarks in heel-marks, bowl-marks and mouthpiece-marks.

Playing child heel-mark

Heel-marks: When the skills of the pipe-makers grew and the market appreciated more quality a need rose to label the pipes with an unique trademark. In the first instance it often was a simple figure applied to the bottom of the heel of the pipe. Later real stamps were developed with the initials of the pipe-maker or images of for example a rose or scales. Soon a kind of brand-loyalty arose from pipe-merchants and pipe-smokers. Some wanted trademarks were swiftly rented, sold or counterfeited. Therefore the official guilds (especially in Gouda and Amsterdam) kept a registration of trademarks and the owners of those. A representative of the guild regularly checked if pipe-makers did not make themselves guilty of counterfeiting trademarks that belonged to a colleague.

Crown with boot bowl-mark

Bowl-marks: This way of decoration roughly took place in the period from 1725 to 1825. Especially the rose proved to be very popular during the years. Commonly these decorations were not applied to more expensive pipes because the relief made the polishing very difficult.

Mouthpiece-mark

Mouthpiece-marks: This kind of decoration is pretty rare. Imagine the price a silversmith would ask for making the moulds! But despite the numbers are small, the variety is surprisingly big. The mouthpiece was used to display names but there are also examples of real commercial messages. Flower and animal figures were also common. A practical advantage of these pipes were that they offered a better grip because they were less smooth . Typical of the in Hoorn produced pipes of this type was the usage of green or brown lead-glaze as an extra decoration.

The manufacturing process of a clay pipe consists of a number of steps:

1. From England, Cologne, Liège or Rouen white-baking clay is imported. This clay undergoes a number of specific treatments (removal of contaminations, grinding, laid to rest (in Dutch this is called “zoken”)) before it is suitable for further processing.

2. By hand the pipe-maker rolls the correct amount of clay to a strand of the right thickness with a kind of lump at the end. In such a way that it fits the pipe-mould. After several days of stiffening the semi-finished product is ready for the next step in the process.

3. The pipe-maker creates the smoking channel in the mouthpiece of the pipe with a so called “weijer” (from the English “wire”), an iron needle or pin. The pin is not stuck in the clay, but the clay is pushed over the pin. Before all this sewing machine oil is applied on the weijer.

4. The roughly shaped pipe is put into an oil-greased pipe-mould which is shut and placed in a bench-vice. Simultaneously with the tightening of the bench-vice the clay of the bowl is pressed.

5. A conical metal shape (“stopper”) is driven again and again in the opening of the pipe-mould to shape the bowl. The stopper is also greased before usage.

6. The pipe-mould is opened and the pipe is lifted out carefully. Excess clay is scraped of the seams of the mouthpiece and the weijer is put out slowly. After the pipes have dried somewhat and feel a little more solid the upper-edges of the bowl and the mouthpiece a trimmed with a sharp knife. If necessary a trademark is applied on the pipe. Luxury pipes are also polished.

7. After a week of drying the pipes go into the oven and are baked by a maximum temperature of 1050ºC. After that they can be glazed and/or painted if wanted after which baking is necessary again. In the past baking primarily took place at potters because they had the knowledge and expensive ovens.

Old Goedewaagen advertisement

One of the big names in the fabrication of clay pipes is the Goedewaagen company. On January 1th 1779 Dirk Goedewaagen passed his master-test for pipe-maker and in February his first assistant came into service. At first the pipe-factory was situated in the Keizerstraat in Gouda but grandson Abraham Goedewaagen relocated the company to the Gouwe, also in Gouda. His sons Pieter and Tobias Goedewaagen took over the “De Star” pottery which dates from 1610. To get more profit and to let the company expand Pieter decided to orientate on the Belgian and French market.

Goedewaagen pipe with a snake around the mouthpiece

Around 1874 and 1882 son Aart persuades his father Pieter to set up a broader, more internationally orientated assortment. Many mould-shapes are took over from Belgian and French pipe factories. After no less then 10 years the company possesses over hundreds of pipe-models. Because of this vast assortment the Goedewaagen pipe-factory surpassed all the other Gouda companies. The P. Goedewaagen & Zoon firm manages to expand and hold its position in The Netherlands. The sales to Belgium and France also went very well. Through English warehouses the company gets lots of orders for the shipping of pipes to countries in Africa. After WWII the demand for pipes declines and the firm concentrates on the manufacturing of pottery. In the beginning of the 1980’s the company comes into financial troubles which leads to their bankruptcy in 1982. Today the name has changed to Royal Goedewaagen and pottery and the occasional souvenir clay pipe is still being made.

Old Van der Want catalogue

Another big name is Zenith. The history of this company starts in 1749 when Pieter van der Want passes his master-test for pipe-maker for the Gouda pipe-guild. Thus starting a line of pipe-manufacturers that from father to son will exist for 8 generations. From the 1950’s Zenith has the oldest, still functioning pipe-factory in the world. Chacom from Saint-Claude stands second with a founding year of 1780. Zenith is well known for a couple of innovations of the clay pipe. Instead of pressing the pipes in metal press-moulds these pipe are being made by pouring clay in moulds made of plaster. The baked pipes were then covered with a glaze layer which gave the pipe a solid, tight and glossy look.

Zenith doorroker

In the 1920’s the product is perfected further. The so called “hollow bowl system” is introduced. The bowl is fit with an inner bowl with a hollow space between both walls. In this space the smoke can circulate, cool off and in the meantime yield its moisture to the ceramic. Thanks to this cooling system the Zenith pipe soon becomes the ultimate dry-smoker. Another innovation is the co called “doorroker”. From its introduction shortly after 1900 it was popular with millions of smokers. After smoking it for a while an image appears on the pipe that stands in contrast with the darkening bowl. That is why the doorroker is also known as the mystery pipe. But also the Zenith Van Der Want company does not survive and closes its doors in 1984.

The decline of the pipe-industry, which began in the 19th century, picks up more speed in the 20th century because of the fashion of the smoking of cigars and cigarettes. When the modern day cigarette was introduced and pipes of briar smoked better and proved to be not so vulnerable it soon was over for the clay pipe. The little simple pipe is now being used by children to blow bubbles with and the beautifully decorated ones stand as an art-object in an antique pipe-rack. The pipes are also being sold as souvenirs and are being used in historical reenactment events.

Patrick Vermeulen

And still, despite it all, this wonderful craft shall be preserved for future generations. Because on December 2nd 2013 Gouda-inhabitant and parttime pipe maker Patrick Vermeulen received the message that “his” craft was acknowledged as immaterial heritage and will be on the UNESCO “Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” list. With this the craft is the first in the province of Zuid-Holland to receive an international status.

Links:
– Clay tobacco pipes made by Kees Moerings (in Dutch)
– Van Vreumingen tobacco store in Gouda The oldest tobacco shop in The Netherlands (from 1836, still managed by the same family!). You can buy clay pipes here.
– Goudse Waag In this old building clay pipe making demonstrations are regularly held.
– Amsterdam Pipe Museum Mr. Don Duco is an expert on the field of clay pipes.
– Der Pfeifenbäcker
– Clay tobacco pipes made by Heather Coleman
– Claypipes.nl Very informative (Dutch) site with lots of pictures (from which I also used some).

An old movie about the making of clay pipes in Gouda (in Dutch):

A movie from 1935 about pipeclub “‘t Blauwe Wolkje” (in Dutch):

The art of making clay pipes. Unfortunately the pipe maker in this video died a couple of years ago:

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March 7, 2013

Dutch tobacco cultivation (no, not weed…)

Fisherman sitting with pipe by Van Gogh

For generations tobacco has had a big influence in Dutch society. After the discovery of America by Colombus in 1492 tobacco and related products found their way to Europe.

Tobacco has initially known various applications (medicine etc.). But its claim to fame is (of course) that of a stimulant. From ±1580, pipe smoking and later sniffing and chewing were in the Netherlands the ways of enjoying tobacco. After about ±1850 until the Second World War the stimulant of choice was mainly the cigar and to a lesser extent chewing. The cigarette (the newest in the line of tobacco products) broke through into the mainstream after the Crimean War of 1855. French, German and English soldiers brought oriental varieties with them. In the 19th century the cigarette won more and more territory. First the Russian ones dominated, then the Egyptian cigarette, in between the Great Wars the English and after the Second World War the American cigarette became the smoke of choice. Because of this the consumption of pipe tobacco made a slow but steady decline.

Gouda clay pipes

In the early days pipe smoking offered many jobs and a source of income for pipe makers and related professions. Especially clay pipes, with the main production city of Gouda (yes, the famous Gouda clay pipes), formed an early pre-industrial industry. This gave a stimulus to the formation of mostly local tobacco factories.

Veere
A doctor from the city of Middelburg, Casper Pelletier, mentioned in the year 1610 that the cultivation of tobacco was first observed around the market town of Veere (on the island of Walcheren in the province of Zeeland). Not strange considering that Zeeland merchants (along with English) had trade relations with the Amazon region and the entire Venezuelan coast where tobacco was grown. Tobacco not only made a good price but was also a popular exchange medium. But the transport was very risky.. Perhaps the reason that from that point on Walcheren itself began growing tobacco.

Tobacco barn in Amersfoort

Amersfoort
Within a few years it became clear that the sandy soils in the region of Amersfoort would be better suited for growing tobacco. In 1636 there were 50 tobacco growers established around Amersfoort. In 1670 there already were 120 and ten years later even 200. Cultivation in the areas around Nijkerk, Elst, Wageningen, Amerongen and Arnhem went pretty well. Also in other parts of the provinces of Utrecht, Gelderland and Overijssel tobacco was grown.

Not entirely coincidentally Amersfoort was the first place where tobacco of any magnitude could come into existence: 1. The farmers had enough and fertile soil. 2. They showed the courage to start something new. 3. They had the big cities of Amsterdam and Utrecht as a market nearby. 4. They had exclusive knowledge which was still (very) rare in those days.

Without the agricultural and business know-how that was needed, this successful start would have never succeeded. This knowledge then still came from an Amsterdam-based Englishman, one Christopher Perry. The same as with the manufacturing of clay pipes, it were the English who a few years before us started with cultivating tobacco. And they learned my ancestors the profession.

Inspection of tobacco in Frascati aan de Nes, 1927

Inspection of tobacco in Frascati aan de Nes, Amsterdam,1927

From the beginning Amsterdam occupied the most important place in the tobacco trade and native cultivation. From Amsterdam the growing of tobacco in Utrecht and Gelderland were guided and stimulated. The use of garden frames and drying barns were Dutch inventions and were continued abroad. More and more farmers made the shift to cultivating tobacco. This labour-intensive industry led to employment and produced more money than the traditional agricultural products.

Amateur cigarettes

However, at the end of the 18th century there was little left from the once famous “Amersfoort” tobacco. The native varieties were less suited for mixing with tobacco for pipe and cigar. The Second World War caused a minor revival due to the scarcity of tobacco from abroad. Half of The Netherlands tried to produce sufficient home grown tobacco. Which was transformed into amateur cigarettes and loose tobacco in the still working factories. It tasted not really good but it was better than nothing.

Blue mold fungus

Finally, the fungus “Blue Mold” put an end to the Dutch tobacco cultivation in 1959. It spread throughout the whole of Western-Europe but the Dutch farmers did not get any compensation from the government (unlike farmers in Belgium and Germany). So the time (3 to 6 years) to grow new fungus resistant crop was too long..

Here are some pictures of Dutch tobacco cultivation: