Clay Pipe

16" x 2.5"Burnt Clay & GlazingTHE NETHERLANDS Who doesn't need one of these in their closet? I know I do, just because...you never know. Clay pipes have been produced since 1617 in the town of Gouda, a place better known today for its cheese. Beginning as a apple wine producer and transport company ("Good Wagon"), by 1779 Royal Goedewaagen ("Good Wagon") was the largest ceramics factory in Gouda and by 1912, they were producing 1300 different pipe models. What happens next is a fairly long and complicated story tied to energy prices, environmental issues and consumption. First off, smoking a pipe went out of fashion as tobacco became more common and more commonly known to be bad for your health. Another complication to the business was that all of the ceramic factories used turf to fire their kilns, but the Netherlands is a small place and by 1950, most of the turf had been consumed. So it was on to electricity, which proved too expensive - companies were going out of business fas