Sasieni

Sasieni is a British pipe house founded in London in 1919, known for the blue dots individually set into its stem. Founder Joel Sasieni — whose name also appears in some records as Joseph — trained at the Charatan bench and rose to management at the Dunhill factory. The sixty years the family remained in charge (1919-1979) are regarded today as the classic era of the English factory pipe.

The Oven Patent and Culling

The real invention that made it possible for Sasieni to start his own business was a drying apparatus: the patent registered in 1919 concerned oven-curing briar bowls. According to period documents, each bowl and shank was kept in the oven for six weeks, taken out periodically to wipe away surface moisture and checked for cracks. This method, compressing the years-long open-air curing process into weeks, also underpinned the young firm's rapid growth. It is recounted that the factory burned down shortly after founding, and the building was rebuilt and production continued.

The culling standard was strict: according to the 1929 catalog, out of every one hundred forty-four blocks purchased, only four were found fit for the top grade. So that sound bowls that failed the cull would not go to waste, secondary lines sold under separate names were established in the early 1930s; His Royal Highness, Royal Stuart, Mayfair, Friar, Henley Club and Old England are the chief among these.