Why Turkish Meerschaum Pipes Are So Expensive | So Expensive | Business Insider

Meerschaum pipes are among the most expensive tobacco pipes in the world. They're made of meerschaum, a mineral typically found in underground mines in Turkey.
While some wooden pipes cost less than $5, the simplest Turkish meerschaum pipes can cost 20 times as much. The most intricate ones can go for over $7,000. So, what sets meerschaum pipes apart from the rest? And why are they so expensive?
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Why Turkish Meerschaum Pipes Are So Expensive | So Expensive | Business Insider

[@waytothewill]

Unfortunately, most of the translations are simply wrong (e.g. the artist does not speak about the evil eye, he says it would make sense to use the broken pipe as a template for future reference).

[@vegasu9418]

not only are the translations wrong, they also cut the dialogues abruptly but put whole sentences in the subtitles

[@boom8906]

They should make a episode about why find "good translaters are expensive" 😀😀😀

[@d-emprahexpects849]

Hahahaha they literally made it up?

[@connorperrett9559]

Wow. It may seem innocuous but for a news company to do that is shameful.

[@waytothewill]

@@connorperrett9559 Totally agreed. I am a linguist myself, maybe I should start working with them. :)

[@stalinsmum6475]

As a collector I own tree of these pipes and they are a true piece of art! Bought them many years ago on a trip to Türkiye, glad to hear the whole story!

[@thepettiestpersonever6534]

"Tree of these peices " 😂

[@pasofino9583]

How do they smoke? Significant differences or just marketing?

[@when_life_gives_you_limes]

*three

[@fvckVlec]

shiiid, did you also pay tree fiddy for em?

[@CB-rv2lj]

@@when_life_gives_you_limes NO. TREE.

[@hemlock_solution]

I've got a dragon claw meerschuam pipe. Cost me a pretty penny, but it's a beautiful work of art. I appreciate the work of these master craftsmen. I love that they're keeping the art alive.

[@JoeKyser]

im looking on ebay and see a ton of them. they dont seem that expensive

[@daedalus1279]

@@JoeKyser I've got a small claw-egg meerschaum pipe that I got new for $75. It smokes wonderfully but since the bowl is much smaller than the rest of my pipes I don't use it very often.

[@vidard9863]

@@JoeKyser the cheap ones are often quite small, and low quality stone, they may break just from smoking. estate pipes are probably cheaper long term... but having said that i don't have any good ones, enjoy the surviving small cheap ones and look forward to the day i can find a quality estate pipe.

[@user-ns7fe3bt6i]

@Ben Dover Why its fake? If u drink water, then others drink fake water?

[@user-ns7fe3bt6i]

@Ben Dover because u don't have logic

[@dahat1992]

One of my absolutely favorite series on KZbin. There are so many cultures the average person knows next to nothing about, which makes it easy for the average person to dismiss them as primitive. This goes a long way towards showing people that just because a culture's art isn't popular, doesn't mean it's any less skilled or storied than ours.

[@danquaylesitsspeltpotatoe8307]

LOL its soon covered with tobacco! so doesnt matter what it is! Ivory is best!

[@dahat1992]

@@danquaylesitsspeltpotatoe8307 You do realize you're supposed to put the tobacco on the inside, right? What kind of moron thinks that smoking will coat the outside of the pipe. 😂😂😂

[@dkpqzm]

The cool thing about mercham pipes is they slowly change color as you use them.

[@cnarozturk3804]

Yes, you are right, however, it is not very wise to learn about cultures from such videos since almost all of the translation is wrong, so wrong in fact, subtitles doesn't even resemble what Ertuğrul is saying in the video. I cannot stop to think that there's a clear disinformation made in order to mystify the whole process, which is a remnant of the orientalist view which by the way, all Turks hate. For example, while Ertuğrul is asking them them about "cutting the video" because of materialist concerns(he probably sees this documentary as an advertisement, or a confirmation of his skill), they simply wrote "evil eye", like he's a superstitious person, to make the whole thing look more "oriental" while he was literally wanting the part where the stone got broken out of the video. Or, another part where he says "You can only sell one or two of them in a year" in subtitles, while he was actually saying "I only make one or two expensive pipes, and lot's of cheap ones, because I make what I can sell", again, like a passionate, starving artisan who can only sell two pipes a year. They've tried to make a Van Gogh out of him. The moral of the story is, of course, it is nice to learn about cultures, but when done in a correct way. We don't smoke pipes in Turkey, I've never seen or heard that stone before and it's whereabouts because we smoke cigarettes in Turkey, not pipes, not cigars. We're not experts of rugs. Carpet salesman in Istanbul are just regular merchants, who makes tremendous amounts of money by selling $14,000 carpets which they bought for $500 from Iran. Artisans, especially the ones is Istanbul(because of the tourist population) simply do those crafts to sell to the tourists, in fact, many of the craft shops I know are tourist traps, overvaluing their items for the sweet foreign money. Most of those crafts are brought to Turkey by artisans(many of them are first generations of those crafts by the way) who learned those abroad, to sell to the tourists and created a fake culture satisfying the expectations of a tourist who came all the way from USA.

[@dahat1992]

@@cnarozturk3804 This is an amazing reply. Thank you so much for translating what he said! I'll be more cautious about this channel from now on. Thank you, my friend.

[@dr_tails658]

The best series! Even though it always comes down to the same reason the products are so expensive (highly specialized master craftsmen, expensive/rare materials, extremely elaborate/time consuming cultivation/processes) but seeing the whole process and putting faces to it is really enjoyable

[@Chev2k3]

I love it for the artistry

[@bold810]

I've known pipe-tobacco smokers both in my family and clan, all my life, and today I learn Meerschaum is a mineral (!!) and not a tree-root. Might not be a gobstopper, But it is to me.

[@AnotherOak]

Ive noticed comments from all over the world..GREAT content.

[@IronAidan260]

Don’t forget, 90% of the time, climate change is threatening the business

[@petzpastelpalace]

It’s the modern how it’s made we needed

[@nitemareman1]

As a pipe smoker of 5 years who enjoys meerschaum pipes, this was a wonderful piece. I urge everyone to stop what you're doing, sit down, relax, and enjoy a pipe! "The pipe draws wisdom from the lips of the philosopher, shuts up the mouth of the foolish; it generates a style of conversation: contemplative, thoughtful, benevolent, and unaffected." -William Makepeace Thackeray

[@kevin4227]

That’s a really great quote!

[@MrGhostTheBigRoast]

tryhard hipster lmao

[@nitemareman1]

@@MrGhostTheBigRoast Didn't know 50 year old Gen Xers could be hipsters. lol Swing and a miss comment tough guy.

[@Starwarrior-pw5st]

Lung cancer premium (but yes they are very pretty)

[@nitemareman1]

@@Starwarrior-pw5st Pipe smokers do not inhale the tobacco smoke. A pipe smoker’s risk of lung cancer is exactly the same as that of the general population. I for one believe the small increased risk of mouth and sinus cancers is far outweighed by the benefits that are accrued by pipe smoking.

[@aerla6576]

I visit Eskişehir regularly and didn't know there was a Meerschaum Museum! My father has a little collection of magnificent hand-carved pipes, so it would be a delight to visit the museum with him.

[@zexfy]

middle of odunpazarı area. if you ask some locals they will show you

[@aerla6576]

@@zexfy Thank you !

[@ZorroIgelDD]

I am from germany, and one of my lifegoal is to travel to turkey and buy one of these pipes. They look so amazing, i would use them!

[@Dillfaro]

It is nice of this channel to show some respect and attention towards the meerschaum pipe. I love my meerschaums for many reasons and I love supporting this community and functional art production.

[@DKtrek21]

Grandpa has two of these and was passed onto me when he passed away. The smoke from it is just so smooth and no added taste compared to wood. I bought one myself for 500 bucks and it was worth it.

[@fintanoclery2698]

I have my grandad's collection of pipes and there's a few of these in there. I don't smoke but I love the smell of pipe tobacco, 500 bucks seems reasonable considering the time and effort put into it.

[@banhatlessducks]

@Ben Dover you'd hate to break your pops pipe, would pull it out on occasions.

[@elvenkind6072]

@Ben Dover He probably wanted 3 of them.

[@mugnuz]

If u have good bryere and the pipe is smoked in theres no added flavor and the heat i better

[@maxharter5716]

@Ben Dover Because they're antiques from their grandfather and they don't want to risk breaking them?

[@frostincubus4045]

I chuckled when Emre took a bite of the Meerschaum 😂

[@RADIT-ip3eq]

Can you eat that? I mean peps eat clay and salt itself is rock but that... Something

[@frostincubus4045]

@@RADIT-ip3eq apparently it's non toxic so you can eat it, but I don't think it has any taste tho

[@vidard9863]

@@RADIT-ip3eq he wasn't eating, and may have just been playing it up for the cameras. he was probably tasting it to see approximately what the composition was

[@RADIT-ip3eq]

So that like eating clay huh, imagine man smoke from that and proceed to eat it. Would be hilarious

[@TheCaptainLulz]

@@RADIT-ip3eq Magnesium Silicate hydrate. Its indigestable but claylike, so basically, its Kaopectate, a medecine used for diarreah.

[@BusterKitten]

I've been smoking Meerschaum pipes made in Turkey as well as other parts of the world since 1975. The flavor, as well as the texture of the smoke can easily be felt on the tongue, and it is very different compared to various wood or clay pipes. What's fun is to blend your own tobaccos to get the unique flavor that suits you.

[@davidhowell5418]

While stationed in Turkey 1984 I bought 3 made by Eyup Sabri. Master of his craft. Beautiful work.

[@christineperez7562]

I respect and appreciate anyone with crafting skills and when there is history behind it it's icing on the cake.

[@davinci3379]

Love it, keep on with this kind of content, original, informative and relaxing to watch . Great work.

[@joshbelis2376]

My pops was involved in one of the 1st Sadam Palace raids. Said he found one of these pipes in one of the smaller library rooms. I've smoked weed out of it, ha

[@adriennefloreen]

That's really interesting, did it affect the taste of the weed? I smoke spliffs of weed and pipe tobacco because the pipe tobacco is like 2 dollars a bag in California vs like almost 20 dollars for the same amount of cigarette tobacco. I'd like to try my smoking mix out of one of these pipes.

[@TheGogeta222]

@@adriennefloreen it Taste more pure in wooden Pipes you Always have a distinct Wood tast in the Back but with Meerschaum Not because of well its a Stone

[@mugnuz]

@@TheGogeta222 thats rubbish. If u have a good bryere pipe theres no flavor of wood over time

[@TheGogeta222]

@@mugnuz but only if you always at all given times use it properly as it is wood it is keen to get burned flavour if it gets too hot stone in the other hand forgives more and your always have the same result

[@kenpatton8761]

While stationed in Turkey, we would travel to Eskisehir to buy pipes to take home. The larger ones were always more expensive but were well worth the price. You had to be careful in selecting your pipe as even back then (1991-93) large pieces of stone were hard to find so “inventive people” would collect the shavings and glue/compress a new chunk of stone to carve. The new pieces would eventually flake/Peal if smoked but were cheaper to buy. Solid pipes didn’t have that problem.

[@wolfrikvonschwarzblut3921]

I don't smoke, but if I ever traveled to Turkey I'd still buy one as a souvenir just because they're so beautiful, and for the tradition and craftsmanship behind them.

[@connorperrett9559]

That's an expensive souvenir for someone who wouldn't even use it!

[@Eddi3xBac0n]

And then you see the price and walk right out

[@itzmrnick6258]

I have one of his pipes. Its fantastic and beautiful. It colors in over time and gives the carving a more distinguished look

[@malmoran8643]

Where did you but it from please ?

[@itzmrnick6258]

@@malmoran8643 The Grand Bazar in Istanbul

[@dapiddiboy]

I picked up smoking pipes about a year ago. I hope it will be more popular again. A pipe is my favorite way to slow down and it’s the perfect companion for solitude. Happy piping KZbin pipe club!

[@KGrane]

LooL i had no idea they were so expensive! My dad has collected over 200 of those pipes since 1972! I bet he will be happy seeing this video!😁

[@dhruvkumar3072]

Ur videos are really amazing..and helpful to learn about world

[@aslanmane]

I've known about this product for many years, but don't own one yet. Nice to see it featured.

[@ayeshaclassesgk]

Business insider❤️plz keep making videos like this❤️Everyday new content we appreciate you for taking your time to make great and awesome videos❤️❤️❤️

[@JohnHausser]

I’m a hardcore anti smoking guy but I appreciate the history and fine craftsmanship of these pipes Cheers from San Diego California 🇺🇸

[@Redskies453]

How does one become hardcore? You either smoke or you don't.

[@Emppu_T.]

What do you mean

[@hawaiianpunch6534]

The details in the carvings are crazy good.

[@austinandtate]

Love this series, keep it up!

[@silverlions]

Every man in Hungary smoked a pipe 100, 200, 300 years ago. The poorer ones used earthenware and wooden pipes, the more affluent ones used Turkish tajtek / meerschaum / pipes. The tajték pipes are white in their new condition, they have turned ivory during use. Some beautifully colored pipes became famous far and wide, bringing glory to their owner. There were people who smoked the new pipes for money and understood how to achieve the most beautiful color. The pipes are said to have become shock-resistant during use.

[@markvann9347]

That's an interesting mineral... It almost carves between what you'd expect of wood and plastic with a knife from what I saw.

[@vaughngaminghd]

My dad had a beautiful hand-carved meerschaum pipe when I was a kid… fascinating and beautiful objects!

[@kraigseder]

Great video! Thank you for this mini documentary on meerschaum pipe makers.

[@balahatun]

considering the subtitles, there is quite some initiative taken by the Turkish translator in this video.

[@Xanderviceory]

as an art glass pipe maker this video hit really close to home

[@fatihselen2435]

Dayının o an kapatın deyişi çok güzeldi

Thanks for making it finally to Turkey!!! So much to discover and looking forward to it ❤

[@djsun1]

very interesting 🧐 i know what my next pipe is 😊thx for the content :)

[@zerteaches5179]

Great skills, great art, great story.

[@brimstone699]

Dare I say…..A Great Big Story??

[@Bob_Adkins]

Lovely video, I adore skilled craftsmen. I'm totally surprised that material this expensive isn't being synthesized. Even a top-grade synthetic diamond can't be distinguished from a natural one without expensive tests.

[@Xarx42]

Hm, magnesium silicate sepiolith needs high pressure and heat to form in combination with volcanic gasses resulting in the porous light structure of the material. So I guess that would be not a cheap process and its only for a smaller market. Diamonds are sold around the world with a very high price. A fistful of material for 40 dollars (from the video) seems to me not high enough, especially with cheap labor costs in Turkey.

[@imstupid880]

There's a reason you have to look for "block meerschaum". A lot of cheap meerschaum is made up of meerschaum powder held together with a binder.

[@redwolfpiping5701]

I have three meerschaum pipes, they all smoke very nice, my oldest comes from Hungary and it is from the 1860s, that still smokes great

[@samspaun8195]

I was stationed at Incirlik AB, Adana Turkey in the late 80s. I have two carved man face type pipes and 6 California Raisin pipes

[@chriscon8463]

I was there for 2 months in ‘02, & bought 2 meerschaum pipes for myself & got 3 of my college buddies one each. We used to smoke briar pipes in college & only dreamed of meerschaums, which were about $100 at the time. I think I paid $10-$12 for each one at Incirlik.

[@pulse-tv2644]

It always comes down to the craftsman. The one who does the work. I remember being taught as a young child how to pin stripe and paint cars, boy did I wish I payed attention. Now it’s a dying breed. Stuff like this is truly amazing and when the masters die off so does their craft. I wish the younger generations got more involved and would enjoy practicing the arts.

[@pony3284]

I just watched a video of a guy doing pinstripes and wording. Frikken insane! The video was on the channel Unintentional ASMR. It's full of other master craftsmen that are a joy to watch

[@frozencanuck6764]

I love watching skilled master craftsmen work. It's sad beyond belief that these craftsmen are disappearing fast.

[@johnunderwood3132]

This is the coolest thing I’ve watched in a long time. How neat

[@RailgunBlaster]

favorite series on youtube…

[@ahniiso5642]

Used to see these everywhere in the markets in Iraq/Afghanistan. Really regretted not buying one cheap there.

[@pharaohakhneton9553]

They presented an example of how an ordinary object of daily use like a pipe could be taken to artistic heights by these master craftsmen!.

[@farwdavid8305]

I love things like this! An everyday object/appliance that at the same time is a breathtaking price of art. I smoke tobacco (and the devils lettuce 🥬 😉) so i might need to get one of these beauties for myself!

[@Dwightpower88]

Don't smoke that lettuce in the pipe if you get one. It will ruin the bowl.

[@gordonpeden6234]

Great video, my only knowledge of meerschaum was the one that Lee van Cleef smoked in "For A few Dollars More" Fascinating!

[@ScreenmobileofStCharles]

Great information on these pipes ....Thank you !

[@Cronama]

It was satisfying to see him take a bite out of the stone, it's what I would have done if they made the mistake of letting me near there.

[@dertyp6849]

I would have been interested in learning about the origin of the name as it translates directly to "ocean foam" in German, which is somewhat unusual. but again a very interesting video

[@benjaminblakemore9704]

THE PLANET IS SO INTERESTING 🤔 GREAT VIDEO AGAIN FANTASTIC 🌍

[@anilbaris3528]

my hometown. very good. they make not only pipes, but also so many souvenirs they made with that stone.

[@venom5809]

Good lord that's a level of amazing detail and quality.

[@brucesteele3052]

I smoked one of those pipes for years. Absolutely the best.

[@PostTraumaticSwagDisorder]

I won one of those pipes and they are truly magnificent

[@CelticConservative]

My God, the talent on display is incredible

[@piplup10203854]

Ooh these pipes are stunning! I don't know anyone who could use one of these and I don't smoke but it is sure pretty!

[@FLaMinPro]

Great details !

[@rayy4639]

This is the best channel to watch randomly at 3am

[@lg5221]

A friend bought one in Hawaii in the early 80s. Great pipe!

[@Jb-uv6si]

Meerschaum is a german word and literally means "foam of the sea" ^^

[@yldrmbrs]

We say "Lüle Taşı" in Turkish. Lüle: The thing that we put the tobacco to be burnt. Taş: Stone.

[@Zandsek]

3:14 VERY NICE YES

[@seanhollowood1151]

I can't be the only who thinks 300$ for a hand mined, hand shaped and hand carved pipe is cheap right? Seriously implying 300$ is expensive feels ludicrous espescially compared to some of the other items we've seen.

[@lordshitpost31]

Slightly yeah, thanks to our government Turkish Lira devalued so hard over the last year, people tend to assume rest of the world is now poor too but that ain't the case :d I remember buying my first hand-made violin in 2003 for 750$, it wasn't expensive, exchange rate was around 1.6, now 18.5 😅

[@oa7554]

@@lordshitpost31 buraya gelip elin gevuruna Ülkemizi kötülemek nasıl bir oc hareket ya

[@furkankarakaya26]

@@oa7554 Ulkemizi kotulemiyo , ekonomimiz hakkinda bilgi veriyo iki gram beynin olsa bunu anlardın zaten. Yorumundan akpli olduğun da cok bariz

[@blackhagalaz]

I wonder how this mineral got its name, because "Meerschaum" is German and means "Seafoam". It's a very interesting material though, almost looks like Ivory and seams to be easy to carve

[@jeezy8589]

same

[@thekraken1173]

In Turkish Lüle means Carving so Lületaşı basically means carving stone.

[@nero_palmire]

Those are works of art!

[@ricksonsoram4554]

1:39 fed up with the world, Meerschaum is playing a guitar😂

[@guyfawkes8873]

The funny thing is that Meerschaum pipes are actually fairly inexpensive when compared to highend briar pipes... So yea..

[@marianopesa298]

Yeah I saw some "basic" (as in , no elaborate carvings) meerschaum churchwarden for like 200 bucks. When briar can run much higher than that. Do you recommend meerschaum or briar?

[@natr0n]

My Dad had some of these style pipes. Pretty cool.

[@laynepaige5397]

I have read and experienced a good method which makes these pipes perfect for cannabis use. A shift on the market focus could bring this craft some good business.

[@Scrumtrulescent1]

Wow these topics are starting to get super specific

[@healthytalk666]

These pipes look really elegant... ❤

[@garybender432]

I bought a saxophone style one in Izmir turkey when I was in the Navy. It had Cleopatras head for the bowl and Roses all up the stem. I think I paid $25 for it in 1970. Beautiful. Unfortunately it got broken on the ship and we never went back to Turkey.

[@NicoCoeurDeLion]

Love it! I am currently trying to save for a meerschaum! The one I want is $300!!! Can’t wait!

[@JornSilverblade]

It's such a great material and also great artists, actually it's a pity that almost only pipe bowls are made out of it. Even if it is sometimes brittle, far more filigree works of art seem to be created with it than, for example, with soapstone etc.

[@Eldagusto]

I have one of these and now I appreciate it more

[@oleksandrs1102]

Great when traditional art is keep being in demand. I am not smoker but I am impressed with this art.

[@alpharius7712]

very nice video!

[@alexjacques2768]

Good research nice script and narration

[@itscumela]

Not a heavy smoker in fact I have asthma lol. But how it’s carved is art, might just buy one for keep sake

[@geraldofabianoartes3074]

Lindo demais parabens. Grande abraço Brasil

[@gimiway5104]

how can l get one of those but I am all the way from Jamaica do U do shipping

[@tomsherwood4650]

I just looked on ebay. The average quality ones of heads etc. are hardly out of line compared to wood burl and are not out of reach at all. The antiques and super detailed elaborate ones are where the money is. Go ahead and get one to try out.

[@scraperindustry]

It's so beautiful!

[@idrisibrahim5307]

I feel like your intro already answered why a product is expensive before asking “why it’s expensive. “😄

[@goeksss]

Today I’ve learnd that Da Vinci was a „ottoman sultan“ … 5:17

[@captainmycaptain8334]

why do these videos always satisfy something in my brain

[@rcyununycvniyb6ucv]

Cool, i have one of thse from my grand father

[@missourimongoose8858]

I've got a friend who made me a steam roller out of this stuff and it's awesome

[@peter-radiantpipes2800]

Got 4 new Meers this month. Enjoying them daily. :)

[@peter-radiantpipes2800]

Make that 5 now. Woops

[@Uchabjason]

The name of the stone is "Lüle taşı" in Turkish, which can be translated to "Pipe Stone" 😅

[@zombl337og]

gotta get me one of these eventually

[@Bettinasisrg]

What about using them to smoke pot? I wonder if it also a better experience.

[@byergo]

There is no substitute for a master carved Turkish Meerschaum pipe!

[@MCMLXXXVICCXII]

Those hand-carved work of art pipes worth every penny, especially after a good hard day work.

[@selimalkan7632]

I have one eagle paw shaped pipe but i quit smoking. If you don't need pipe you can also buy meerschaum chess set, earing, necklace etc.

[@conscience-commenter]

Ertugrul is the Michelangelo of meerschaum . Much respect for exquisitely carved masterpieces .

[@spongeesponge9623]

Hope this channel will feature products that sooooo cheap...

[@alparslankorkmaz2964]

Nice video

[@SandyRiverBlue]

Stuff's amazing. When wet it's soft as soap when dry it's hard as rock, which is why he can carve it with what amounts to an exacto knife.