Smoking Traditions of Peoples Past- The Dwemer

Smoking Traditions of Peoples Past - The Dwemer

The smoking of tobacco and other assorted materials has a long and storied history only glossed over in my last series, The Smoking Traditions of Tamriel. Given the incredible historical weight of these traditions among the peoples of this land we so love, I felt compelled to dig deeper into the historical modes and manners of the smoking arts among those cultures that are no longer with us.

This all began after presenting my last set of treatises to the Imperial Historical Society at their annual Symposium. After my presentation I was introduced to a most interesting man, one Hasphat Antabolis, a member of the Fighter's Guild who maintains a part-time residence in my hometown of Bal Mora. He extended me an invitation to visit his private residence the next time I was in town, and I did so gladly.

Hasphat maintains a deep and abiding love of Dwemer culture, and was eager to show me his collection, which included no small amount of smoking pipes crafted by the deep folk.

I was first shown a long pipe with a prodigious stem of some eighteen inches in length set at an extreme angle from the bowl. At the base of the stem was a sort of simple mechanical clasp which Serjo Antabolis explained was for clipping the pipe to the clothing or a belt, so the Dwarf could enjoy his pipe hands-free while working. Below the clasp was a small (badly stained, but nontheless remarkably intact) glass bottle, the purpose of which was to collect the heated tobacco juice, thus enabling the pipe to smoke drier, and thusly cooler. The bowl itself was a simple affair of carved briarwood, which was removable, set into a sort of brass holder with fins all around, acting as a sort of heat-sink to maintain the bowl at optimal smoking temperature. The stem itself was of brass for most of the length, and coiled around a central post, such as uncoiled, its length must have been significantly longer. At the end was a short length of flexible leather wrapped around a copper coil and connected to an amber bit, not unlike the hose of a nargile, which allowed the smoker to move his head about whilst keeping the bit firmly trapped in his teeth.

There were several such pipes of this type in Hasphat's collection, though none so remarkably preserved. The bits were made of various materials, from precious stones, to metals, to wood, and some other semi-soft black material which I had not witnessed ever before.

More impressive still was a Dwemer chamber-pipe, a massive construct of brass and wood that dominated the room which housed it. This machine housed multiple bowls for various smokable preparations, and several smoke-tubes that could be held by up to a dozen individuals. It crossed my mind that the device bore more than a passing resemblance to the Aldmeri Aquaphoria (see Smoking Traditions of Tamriel- The Summerset Isles). Indeed, these chamber-pipes were a popular communal activity among the Dwemer.

Also in Hasphat's collection were a handful examples of Velothi Nargile (see Smoking Traditions of Tamriel- Morrowind), which were apparently somewhat popular among the Dwemer of Morrowind. These pipes were typically of insect-shell and wooden construction, and a fair bit more primitive in design than the popular Dunmer pipes smoked today.

It was now Abundantly clear that the Deep Folk enjoyed smoking, but what they smoked remained a mystery. Hasphat was unsure himself, but the spark of curiousity was already kindled in my mind. Searching for answers, I first consulted the Library of Vivec, then the Imperial Historical society. We found little in the way of historical documentation on Dwemeri smoking, and it was decided that an expedition would be required to attempt to locate some unspoilt Dwemer tobacco. My journey eventually led me west, to Skyrim, specifically, to the town of Markarth. The Dwemer City beneath Markarth was unusually well-preserved, owing to the almost constant presence throughout history of either dangerous reachmen or Imperial guards, which set the place apart from most of the other Dwemer ruins in Tamriel, which have frequently been plundered and picked-over by adventurous souls.

Hasphat, himself curious, joined me, and together we submitted a request to the Jarl to explore the Dwarven city located beneath Understone Keep. Pooling our resources, we hired a cadre of Nord bodyguards and set into the depths of the lost city.

The expedition took several days, in which there was no small need for the guards, and indeed though Hasphat was an impressive hand with a blade, we were glad to have the extra men to watch over us. After four days camping in those wet, cold pits, we found what we were searching for- a Dwarven Larder, untouched and unopened since the Deep Folk vanished without a trace so long ago.

The door was warded by a complex lock requiring a unique key, a sort of puzzle-box which Hasphat had on hand (he made a joke that it was given to him by the Nerevarine. I made it clear that I found this sort of tall tale both unfunny and distasteful.) With the larder opened, we found all manner of food and assorted goods in storage, though obviously most of the food was reduced to little more than residues or dried bits of detritus, we recovered many samples for analysis. Among the items we indeed found several jars of dried tobacco leaves.

Returned to my study, I carefully studied the leaves (which were decayed to the point of being nearly dust) and found them to be smoke-cured, in a style not unlike the tobaccos from Hammerfell. Other samples appeared similar to tobaccos of Black Marsh and Argonia. It seems likely that the Dwemer never truly took to the art of cultivating their own tobacco, but did seem to be willing to trade far and wide for fine smokables.