A pipe with a surprise

[Stan S.]

Here is my latest aquisition - it's an ornate opium pipe presumably from India or Thailand (or elsewhere in Asia - can anyone suggest a proper origin)? Straight, 14" long wooden shaft encased in low grade silver or tin with a bulbous finale shaped to resemble a poppy seed pod. Nicely shaped peacock with a small "dish" on its back for the burning of whatever substance its owner fancied. And, a nice feature which attracted me to this item is a hidden blade inside the pipe. It is single edged and of a relatively poor quality but appears to be sufficient enough for sticking between someone's ribs in a dimly lit and smokey opium den or in a back alley somewhere

Despite a nice patina, I would imagine that the pipe is not terribly old. My guess is early to mid 20th century but I could be wrong.