by Steven R. Cooper, Kingston Springs, Tennessee
When the Old World discovered the New World, included amongst the many new discoveries was the custom of smoking plants through pipes. While there is some minor evidence of a few individuals smoking hemp and inhaling such herbs as lavender for medicinal purposes in European prehistory, pipe smoking was virtually nonexistent. Of the four main plants introduced to the Old World (potatoes, maize, tomatoes, and tobacco), only tobacco spread to nearly every corner of the world. In a short time, large tobacco plantations were producing huge quantities that were transported across the ocean into the markets of Europe and beyond. Clay pipes were mass produced and smoking beyond a popular pastime. Tobacco was also chewed and utilized as snuff (the original tobacco was much stronger than that which is smoked today). This lust for tobacco fueled the slave trade, with massive amounts of labor required to make these pre-industrial operations viable.
While smoking has been popular in the Old World since the mid-1500s, the New World had a smoking culture for thousands of years that combined pleasure, religion and medicine into a myriad of uses that utilized thousands of pipes. In North America the pipe evolved from simple tubes to elaborate enhanced designs that are truly remarkable in their form. Some were made to be utilized in shared communal events. Many were very small versions for personal smoking. These forms spread throughout the continent. The Midwest saw the development of many pipes into an art form, with a high degree of sophistication in style and manufacture. Each culture (i.e., Hopewell, Adena, Mississippian) produced pipes that epitomize a level of craftsmanship that reflects the degree to the development of that society. It is possible through the examination of pipes, including their designs, materials along with how widespread they were utilized, to develop a realistic picture of the past when perishable items are nonexistent. The purpose of this paper is to focus on one pipe style, and indeed, one pipe itself.
One style that spans the prehistoric and historic periods is known as the disc pipe. This is a multi-level pipe design that has on top a disc with a central hole that is placed above an elongated keel base in which the stem hole is drilled. The disc is elevated from the keel in prehistoric examples. Some historic examples have the disc sitting directly on the keel. The majority are made from catlinite, which with use develops a deep dark patina. There is a subset made from white limestone and some examples are made from other materials, but these are few in number. Pipe size usually ranges from 1–4 inches in length, but there are a few that exceed 9 inches in length. Once this form was adopted, it seems to have spread rapidly, and these have been found throughout a wide area (Wisconsin to Georgia and the Great Plains to New York). Nearly all have a high degree of polish, and some examples have engraving as well as other design details, including extended bases, notched prongs and in rare cases, animal effigies. The pipes were handheld with a long stem inserted. Many examples retain evidence of being smoked.
Recently the author was able to acquire a disc pipe that is made somewhat different than other examples in that it has a prominent “apron” in its design. Owning two other smaller examples, at first I did not think this added design was anything significant. But in researching disc pipes in George A. West’s classic Tobacco Pipes and Smoking Customs of the American Indians (1934), I was surprised to see several other nearly identical examples of this pipe. To those who are unfamiliar with the West book, it is a huge massive work that shows several thousand exhaustively researched pipes. It was at one time very scarce, but has been reprinted by Hart Publishers. It is a must-have for any artifact library.
What I discovered is that this style of disc pipe is referred to by West as the “Ceremonial or War Bundle Disc Pipe.” There are several examples shown in West’s publication, and he states:
“The Ceremonial Disk Pipe is very rare, not over a dozen having been reported. All appear to be made of Minnesota catlinite. They have a square base at the stem-end and taper almost to a point at the opposite extremity. The disc is thick and extends outward to cover the base. The end of this projection often contains a number of small notches or tally marks. The disc contains a very small bowl-hole, set at a considerable angle to the stem aperture. These pipes are all of about the same type.”
“Several have been taken from sacred bundles. A close examination of these pipes disclosed no marks of steel tools… They have all the appearance of being prehistoric and may have passed from generation to generation for a considerable period of time.”
West describes each pipe in detail and its origins. Interestingly, he discusses three Osage war bundles, two of which had never been opened. He and the director of the Milwaukee Public Museum then go about opening these bundles and describing the elements within. He notes these war-bundles probably came from Oklahoma.
The other examples he shows came from various locations, including Wisconsin, Illinois and even one from a mound in White County, Georgia, which he considered an intrusive burial as it was in the side of the mound (less than three feet underground). He notes some of the other examples were part of previously unwrapped war-bundles.
Of particular interest in regard to the pipe this article is referring to is another specimen from the same region. He states:
“Ceremonial Disc Pipes are occasionally taken from the sacred bundles of the Iowa Indians. This pipe was found by W. F. Dresser in an Indian grave on the south side of the divide between Bear Creek and the Oneota or Upper Iowa River. The pipe has a handle, and the disc is extended, in the form of an apron, to the end of the handle. Just under the apron, near the disc proper, is a perforation extending through the handle. The hole is drilled from each side, and probably used for suspension of pendants of some kind. The end of the base, or handle, contains notches common to this type of pipe.”
The pipe shown in Figures 1,2,3,5,6 was acquired by the author from Brandon Vanderver. How he acquired it is interesting. He stated that prior to the days of the internet, he used to advertise in the local papers of random small towns in Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois for Indian artifacts, utilizing the headline “I Buy Indian Artifacts.” According to Brandon, he acquired the pipe from Chris Jensen, whose grandfather had once owned the pipe. Brandon stated: “I got a lot of phone calls from those ads before the internet killed it. No other details on how it was found, just the very found and county was all he was able to tell me. And this was the only piece he had. He said he had kept the best piece and sold the rest of the collection when it was left to him, and that was 8–10 years before I got the pipe.”
Chris told Brandon it was found in 1917 by his grandfather in Lee County, Iowa. Lee County is at the far eastern side of the state, bordering the Mississippi River with Illinois just across the river and Missouri on its southern end. Brandon acquired the pipe from him in 2006.
The pipe measures 4 5/16 inches (110mm) in length, and is heavily polished. There is a small missing piece at the bottom of the keel at the opposite end of the stem hole, sometimes referred to as the “prongs” element of the design. Under microscopic examination, this break has patination, so it must have happened far in the past. The curved base of the pipe has a multitude of engraved “V”-shaped markings that almost appear to be cross-hatching. These appear intentional. There are also some marks on the bowl of the pipe, but I am not certain if these are just something that happened during its use or were intentionally added. The side perforation is drilled through in the exact same fashion (from each side) as the pipe George West describes from Iowa. If the pipe is viewed down the length of the top portion, the design resembles the “three-pronged” mace design so prevalent in Mississippian culture. The bowl has some evidence of smoking, retaining a black residue.
With so few examples known, and most in museums, I feel lucky to have acquired and added this rare and important pipe to my collection.
References (Text Only)
- Hohfner, Larr
1999 Collector’s Guide to Indian Pipes. Collector Books, Paducah, Kentucky - McGuire, Joseph
1899 Pipes and Smoking Customs of the American Aborigines; Based on Material in the U.S. National Museum. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. - West, George A.
1934 Tobacco Pipes and Smoking Customs of the American Indians. Two Volumes. Reprinted by Hart Publishers 2001.