Despite its inspiration from the natural world, I think of the Elephant's Foot as among the more sculptural and stylized of Danish shapes. The crisp lines formed by the panels that flank each side tend to impart a kind of architectural feel that differentiates it from shapes that are softer and rounder. Compositions like the Elephant's Foot are eye-catching, as they show off the spectacular grain that is necessary to make the shape work, but they can sometimes be (for me at least) a bit intimidating as an actual smoking instrument.

That's why I'm particularly taken with this example from Tom Eltang, which not only packs the full visual punch associated with a shape like this one, but does so in a way that doesn't forget that this is a pipe that is meant to be smoked. Relatively compact of size, the pipe features side panels that are somewhat small compared to other renditions of the shape, producing a rounder form. The end result is an accessible pipe that is a joy to hold just as it is a joy to view.

-Joshua Burgess