Bach and a Pipe

 Bach was known to drink wine and smoke a pipe.  I did a little research in the area and found he was known to use tobacco in a pipe.  Tobacco came from the New World and before the New world was settled tobacco was traded back and forth.  He had access to tobacco as it took some wealth back then to afford the tobacco.  It was used mostly in the upper classes of Europe and it is said that his cousin supplied him the tobacco.

As to whether men of great wealth generally used tobacco is a debate that countries today.  Shakespeare is not known to have smoked tobacco, but it seems he used pot and cocaine, which were found in clay pipes excavated from his property.  But many think it would be scandalous to suggest Shakespeare used tobacco.  

When we get to the settling of the New World, pipe smoking was common among men.  The odds are great that great historical figures were pipe smokers, but most of this is conjecture but we simply don’t know.  If tobacco was used back in Bach’s day it would have been strictly for pipe smoking in a clay pipes.  

I decided to Google the question about famous men and pipe smoking and found out that old broken clay pipes were excavated from properties of famous men and that is about the only way we know.  But we also know that cocaine and opium were found as traces in many of these pipes.  

While Charles Dickens is not known for smoking a pipe, his writings suggest he knew of the benefits of tobacco use and may have possibly smoked a pipe himself although it is conjecture only from his writings.  But it’s not conjecture Bach smoked a pipe.  Those are my thoughts about pipe smoking.  It’s not conjecture I smoke a pipe.  It’s Sunday today and my pipe is my Nording Angel pipe and my tobacco is Old Professor.  My coffee this morning is Blue Bottle.  Thank you for your time and Peace to each one of you.

Dave