Vauen Dr. Perl (3305) smooth straight apple

The name on this shank is not a marketing label. It is the filter itself.

In 1934 Vauen introduced the Dr. Perl junior, a 9mm filter built around an activated-carbon element - the first of its kind in the pipe trade. This pipe carries that name still, stamped alongside its shape and model number, 3305.

This is a Vauen Dr. Perl, model 3305, a straight apple in a smooth finish, fitted with a vulcanite saddle stem cut to a fishtail slot and bored for the 9mm filter the name promises.

In 1901 that works merged with the factory of Gebhard Ott, founded in 1866, to form the Vereinigte Pfeifenfabriken Nurnberg, run at the time by Ernst Eckert of the Ott family. In 1909 Adolf Eckert coined the name VAUEN itself from the initials of that merger - the V of Vereinigte and the N of Nurnberg.

The Dr. Perl filter this pipe is named for was not a minor variant.

Vauen's grading marks are a separate history. Lower grades carry the VAUEN name alone. From 1968 onward, most models were also fitted with a conical filter seat at the base of the bore, called Conex, which centers the 9mm cartridge without a step for it to lodge against; its absence proves nothing, only its presence dates a model.

THE MARKS
- VAUEN DR. PERL, stamped on the shank
- Model/shape number 3305

The apple is among the oldest bowl profiles in the trade - a rounded, gently bulbous bowl, distinct from the billiard's cylindrical wall and the bulldog's diamond shank. This example is cut straight, so the stem runs in line with the shank rather than dropping toward the jaw. The saddle stem steps down from shank diameter to a flatter mouthpiece profile, and its fishtail slot spreads the draw across a wide, flattened opening rather than a single round bore - a detail that eases the pull through a filtered chamber. At 44mm of bowl height on a chamber 39mm across and 40mm deep, this is a full-sized everyday bowl, built for a long smoke rather than a quick one. It sits well in the hand, the saddle's flat shoulder giving the teeth a stop to close against rather than a taper to grip.

The bowl is left smooth, not blasted or rusticated, so whatever grain the briar carries is shown rather than textured over. Finish and grain: see the photographs.

Condition: pre-smoked estate pipe, graded fair. Scratches and dents are present around the briar. The vulcanite mouthpiece shows bit marks from prior use.

THE MEASUREMENTS
Length: 145mm (5.8")
Bowl height: 44mm (1.8")
Bowl width: 39mm (1.6")
Bowl depth: 40mm (1.6")
Diameter: 20mm (0.8")
Weight: 1.4 oz
Filter: 9mm

Ships from the Faridunhill / Pipe Collectors Encyclopedia archive. Worldwide shipping and professional sanitation on every estate pipe.
SKU: 086