Butch Taylor

Butch Taylor, like his brother Lee, is a fourth generation pipecarver.

  Butch carves both replicas of traditional style pipes and original pieces. 

He is a world-class artist who is famous in his own right. 

He was one of the artists featured in the "Pipemaker" video and has appeared on Good Morning America. 

He continues to carve despite a recent heart attack and a disability which confines him to a wheel chair.

The pipe pictured here is a replica of one of the pipes found in Sitting Bulls bundle after his death.

  Notice the raised rings covering the bowl.  These rings make this a challenging pipe to carve. 

The Handle Pipe is a replica of a pipe found in Hopewell digs in Ohio.

  Butch told us this story about how this pipe was used.

One story about this unique pipe style is that the pipe was passed around the circle,

and instead of being handed to the next smoker,

 the pipe was stuck into the earth to ground the energy of the previous smoker.

  These pipes, like many mounds pipes,

did not have a stem and are often referred to as lip pipes.