Army Mount

Last week’s absolutely jaw-dropping drop of some 200 Plateau pipes makes it a perfect occasion to stop and take a closer historical look about what we can document concerning this remarkable line. For the new release, you might want to begin with Andy Wike, joined by Shane Ireland and Sykes Wilford for this week's episode of All Pipes Considered which is must-viewing for all Pete Geeks. I’ve appended the transcript from the SPC website below for those who want to ponder it at length or digest its information after viewing. So where's the Plato been all this time?  It was first seen about 50 years ago in a short film made for RTE, Ireland’s public TV station, narrated by and featuring Paddy Larrigan as he creates the complete Plato, from hand-turned P-Lip to final stamping, before our eyes. You can read about it at Post #263 and if you haven't seen it, watch it below (it's about 30 minutes). In the film Larrigan is a youthful-looking 52 and had “entered service” (as they said in those days) on September 9, 1946 in the Repair Department, learning pipes from the ground up. By 1964 he had been promoted to Instructor, and in 1971 was made Factory Manager. His parents had both worked there before him; his brother Liam worked there as a silversmith; his son would work there for a time. The immediate occasion for the film was what was perceived as the Centenary of the company: 1975. It turns out 1875 was actually the year Charles Peterson came to work for Frederick Kapp at the latter’s Dublin shop, probably coming over from England where he’d been working under Frederick’s brother George. Frederick had bankrupted in London and shifted to Dublin in 1874, presumably taking his assets with him if he was able to begin again. So—back to 1975. Pipe smoking was nearly its zenith worldwide and the company was as robust and inventive as it would ever be, introducing new lines, shapes and series, inspired and invigorated by the past and by the apostolic succession of craftsmen like Larrigan who had been trained by previous craftsmen all the way back to Charles Peterson himself.The company would mount an exhibition for their centenary at Ireland Hall, Dublin, where Larrigan would take “the French,” a small lathe formerly used in the French-manned side building of the St. Stephen’s Green factory before WWII, and turn pipes for the public in much the same way Charles Peterson did in the window on Cuffe Lane at the Stephen’s Green factory. RTE got wind of the exhibition, naturally, and proposed to do a short film, which debuted early in 1976. Back when you could smoke your pipe at the factory, Larrigan is getting ready to apply the "SPECIAL" stamp to his creation. The Plato we know has always been adorned with the Peterson over Dublin stamp. Larrigan's film creation bore this one. Because it was 1975, new ideas in pipe shapes were in the air, mostly…