Clay Tobacco Pipes
they are easily broken, and in constant need of replacement.
Having so short a useful life, their forms were constantly updated to conform to the vagaries of fashion economic factors. The size of the pipe bowl is seen to grow gradually throughout the seventeenth century.
For many years, they study of clay tobacco pipes has hinged upon these changes in form. Typologies have been constructed placing forms in relative sequences as they are recovered from unfolding archaeological layers.
Relative chronologies aldon can do no more than place one form earlier or later than another, but if some forms can be given absolute dates by reference to documented events, such as the great fire of London, or perhaps a civil war occupation of a castle, then gradually the whole sequence can be pinned down to an accurate time scale.
Pipe Aston is contributing to this by fixing dates of pipe makers using full name stamps by reference to entries in the parish registers.
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