What Is Block Meerschaum?

Block Meerschaum - There are 2 types of meerschaum used in the creation of smoking pipes; block meerschaum and pressed meerschaum. ... This type of meerschaum is heavier than block, does not smoke as cool, does not color as well and any carving is typically clunky and uninteresting.

How can you tell a real meerschaum?

Real meerschaum pipes absorb tobacco tar and oil, which is wicked to the surface by a beeswax coating. Over time a meerschaum pipe's color turns from creamy white to a rich golden brown or cherry. Check for any “burn out” places on the bowl of the pipe. Real meerschaum doesn't burn.

What is Turkish meerschaum?

Meerschaum is a soft white stone which mineralogists call sepiolite (hydrous magnesium silicate, called lületaşı [LUR-leh-tah-shuh] in Turkish). It's mined in villages near Eskisehir in Aegean Turkey and carved into beads, necklaces, earrings and especially pipes. ... Meerschaum pipes are the most familiar and famous item.