Carved meerschaum pipe, 20th century Pipe depicting the bust of an Ottoman warrior wearing a turban adorned with a feather. The meerschaum work is finely detailed, highlighting the beard and the ornamentation on the headdress. Long, slightly curved, reconstituted amber pipe. Presented on a carved wooden stand. H. 14 x 8 cm Please note: Meerschaum pipes, a material extracted mainly from the Eskişehir mines in Turkey, have been prized since the 18th century for their lightness and ability to provide a cool, dry smoke. Their use spread widely throughout the Ottoman Empire before seducing European smokers. Figurative models, such as this portrait of an Ottoman warrior, are characteristic of the Orientalist taste in vogue in the 19th and early 20th centuries.