Sasieni: Difference between revisions

=== A Brief History of the Sasieni Company ===

There is a great deal of mystery surrounding the Sasieni pipe, owing largely to the fact there is such a paucity of written information about them, as is the case with many collectible pipes. Even the name of the founder has been subject to debate. One respected source says the founder was named “Joel” Sasieni. Another equally respected source says with equal certainty the name was “Joseph” Sasieni. (A third, rather less reliable source once told me “Joel” and “Joseph” were brothers, but I think we can safely dismiss that.) An old Sasieni catalog which I came maddeningly identifies the founder as “J. Sasieni”.  However, some research at the U. S. Patent Office conclusively shows that his first name was Joel.

<center><gallery Widths=250 heights=200px Caption="Sasieni Fantail, courtesy Doug Valitchka">

File:Fantail01.jpg

===Why Collect Sasieni’s?===

There are many reasons to collect these pipes, ranging from the purely monetary to the aesthetic and esoteric. While I personally do not collect pipes to make money, nor do I advise same, the fact remains a high grade, flawless, first quality pipe that currently sells for less than $100, and often less than $50, surely must have some potential for appreciation. No less an authority than the late Barry Levin himself once told me he felt Sasieni’s were severely under valued, but as time went by they would eventually take their rightful place next to Dunhill and Barling, as people came to appreciate the wonderful qualities of this pipe.

=== Some Acknowledgments ===

*An article like this is never truly finished. Just when I think I’ve got it all figured out, I’ll talk to another collector, or read another magazine article, or come across some bit of long hidden information, and be forced to reconsider my ideas. Should anyone have anything to add to this article, I would enthusiastically welcome your call. My office number is (617) 878-1300.

*Thanks first and foremost go to Theodore Justin Gage, former publisher of “The Compleat Smoker”, and Richard Carleton Hacker, author of “The Ultimate Pipe Book”. Both men graciously allowed me to quote from their published works, and gave generously of their time on three separate occasions each, even though neither of them was expecting a call from yours truly. Richard Carleton Hacker literally allowed his dinner to get cold one evening while he answered my many questions.

#Richard Carleton Hacker, The Ultimate Pipe Book, 2nd ed. (1984; reprint, Beverly Hills, CA: Autumngold Publishing, 1989), 234. Quoted with the author’s permission.

#Theodore Justin Gage, “The Sasieni Pipe: A Discriminating Collector’s Delight,” Levin Pipes International’s The Complete Smoker Monograph #2, October, 1993. Quoted with the author’s permission.

== Off site links ==