Researchers discover 18th century clay tobacco pipes were used as weapons and surgical tools

By Angela Muir, Lecturer in British Social and Cultural History and Director of the Centre of Regional and Local History, University of Leicester
Sarah Inskip, Future Leaders Fellow in the School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of Leicester

Tobacco pipes were one of the first mass-produced, disposable objects in Britain. Through contact with indigenous peoples of the Americas, tobacco pipes and tobacco were introduced to Europe as early as the 16th century, but had been used in the Americas for centuries before this.

Pipes were adapted for European tastes using European materials, and in England the most popular material for pipes between 1600 and 1900 was clay. Shapes and styles varied over the years, but…

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