Art or kitsch

9 December 2024

This unexpected table pipe is the most bizarre pipe on offer this year. The pipe bowl is hidden in a Roman soldier representing the Rape of a Sabine Virgin. The helmed soldier is seated on a triumphal chariot drawn by two lions, led by a putto. The style of work and the presentation of the subject point to German manufacture, probably not long after the year 1800. The whole is cut from a large block of meerschaum. Striking and flashy, but not artistic or refined and especially not very user-friendly. The question immediately arises: should such a kitschy object be represented in our collection? Or should our focus remain on the utilitarian item?

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