Joura

Karl-Heinz Joura was born in what was then part of Eastern Germany, and while a young man developed into a world class diver. Such was his prowess that he competed in many world competitions, including the German Championship Games in 1961.

Finding that his future in the Eastern bloc looked rather bleak Joura defected to the West, hiding in the cargo hold of a freighter bound for Bremen, where he now resides.

Being a great athlete Karlo taught physical education at schools in West Germany. Noting that many of his fellow teachers were pipe smokers Karlo, who liked working with his hands, began to craft pipes. These first pipes were so successful that he decided to devote his life to pipe making.

Joura possesses both imagination of design and the precise execution to carry his designs through to their fullest potential. Karlo's devotion to getting the best out of each block of briar and rod of vulcanite is such that he crafts only 200 pipes each year- miniscule in terms of quantity. So, how does a man who makes so few pipes in a year carve out the huge reputation that Joura has earned? One has only to look, feel, and smoke one of Joura's pipes to understand.

A fascinating point: Joura is the only pipe maker to stamp on each pipe a symbol representing the type of briar used. Karlo uses briar from three distinct regions- Corsica (represented by a star), Sardinia (symbolized by a tobacco plant), and Southern France (a leaf).

---