Butz-Choquin Reptile Red Straight Apple, contemporary era (owner-stated)

This reference example documents a Butz-Choquin pipe in the maker's Reptile Red finish, a distinctive treatment characterised by a cracked, alligator-like surface pattern rendered in deep red patches over lighter red undertones. The bowl is briar, cut in the Straight Apple shape with the plump, rounded profile typical of the form. The stem is red acrylic (lucite), given a slight bend, and the pipe is constructed to accept 9mm filters — a system widespread among continental European makers and a hallmark of French and German production oriented toward filter smoking. Butz-Choquin occupies a significant place in French pipe history. The Apple is among the oldest standard shape families, tracing to the nineteenth century, and is valued for its balance, compact rounded bowl, and versatility; the straight variant presented here is the form's most traditional configuration. Dating this example presents a specific challenge: the pipe carries no stampings whatsoever, so no nomenclature, logo style, or line marking is available to anchor an attribution. Butz-Choquin, like most makers, does not employ factory date codes in any case, so even a stamped example would ordinarily be dated by finish line and catalogue comparison rather than by code. The owner describes the pipe as recent production rather than an older piece, and the Reptile Red finish is consistent with the firm's modern catalogue offerings. On this basis the era is best recorded as contemporary per owner statement, with the bracket otherwise undetermined. Recorded dimensions are 5.5 inches in length, 1.9 inches in bowl height, 0.8 inches in chamber diameter, and 1.6 ounces in weight.