Signature luxury: Pens which are the best collector's item

The pen is mightier than the sword, and in some cases, more expensive, too. Consider this: the most expensive pen sold for $8 million (Rs 65.45 crore) at a charity auction in Shanghai in 2010. Called the Fulgus Nocturnus, which roughly translates to “Night Glow”, the pen manufactured by Italian pen designer Tibaldi comprises 945 black diamonds and 123 rubies with an 18k gold nib. But that’s not the only thing making it special. In a true testament to design, the pen’s dimensions are based on the Golden Ratio or phi, originally found in nature, the human body and often used as a design principle in architecture. The ratio of the length of the pen’s cap and its barrel is 1.618, or phi.

While you may not have placed the winning bid on the Fulgus Nocturnus, you can always consider an exclusive limited edition pen from German luxury brand Montblanc. Called the ‘Montblanc High Artistry The First Ascent of the Mont Blanc’ collection, these limited edition pens pay tribute to the first ascent of Western Europe’s highest peak. Priced at €1.5 million (Rs 13 crore), the pen has a solid white gold cap bejewelled with alternating ribbons of diamonds and sapphires to represent icy mountains. The solid white gold barrel of the pen is set with diamonds in different shapes and sizes to reflect the snowy peaks in sunshine. The white gold nib has a three-dimensional engraving of the edelweiss flower—one of the most coveted flowers for an alpinist—with a diamond at its centre. Only five such pieces are available globally.

Closer home, you can become a proud owner of the ‘Montblanc Writers Edition Homage to Brothers Grimm’ pen collection. Paying tribute to the tradition of storytelling and the magic of fairy tales, the collection pays tribute to Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, who popularised tales such as Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. Priced at over Rs 32 lakh, the pen is shaped like a wooden wandering stick as a reference to the tradition of wandering storytellers. While the clip looks like a gnarly root upfront, when turned sideways it reveals the facial profile of the Brothers Grimm. The collection is limited to 86 fountain pens, a reference to the number of fairytales published in the first edition of their book.

If you are a serious pen collector, you of course must have a Caran d’Ache pen. And if it’s an heirloom piece you are looking for, consider the Gothica. First released in China in 2006 by the Swiss manufacturer, the pen is limited to 1,140 pieces, representing the era that inspired the look of this pen. The six-sided body of the pen is made of rhodium-coated silver, which like diamonds and gold today, was once considered most desirable. The pen, inspired by gothic architecture, was priced at $487,000 (Rs 3.98 crore) at launch. It has since been discontinued making it more of a collector’s item.

Then there’s Montegrappa, one of Europe’s oldest and most celebrated pen makers, which was the first Italian company to specialise in gold-nibbed fountain pens. As a result, they were a popular and reliable choice for soldiers writing home during World War I and the brand’s most notable ambassadors included Ernest Hemingway. The brand continues to design limited-edition collections to fuel the passions of collectors and writers. Get yourself a pen from the 007 collection, limited to only 380 fountain pens with each individually numbered. Like James Bond’s gadgets issued by MI6’s Q Branch, there is more to the pens than meets the eye. A false barrel segment conceals a set of cufflinks that can be extracted and locked back into place as per need. Priced at €4,995 (Rs 4.35 lakh) the pen is available on the company website for worldwide shipping.

But it is their Viking collection available in both silver (€15,000, or Rs 13 lakh) and gold (price on request) that has collectors excited. Made of pure silver or gold, the pen’s cap is designed like a Viking complete with headgear, beard and armour while the barrel makes the legs. There is also a detachable sword.

While the European writing instrument manufacturers are known for their aesthetic appeal, it was Paul Fisher, an American who first realised when man started to explore outer space, that there was no existing writing instrument that could function successfully (and safely) in zero gravity. After much research, he came up with what we today know as the Fisher Space Pen, which was used by NASA astronauts in 1967. Since then, millions have used the pen which, thanks to its pressurised solid ink technology, doesn’t leak and writes reliably on difficult surfaces, including underwater. If you are looking at doing crossword in bed, pick up any regular Fisher Space Pen (they work upside down too) but if it’s a piece of history you are interested in, go for the limited edition pens launched on the 50th anniversary of the 1969 Apollo 11 mission. Limited to only 500 pieces, the AG-7 Space Pens feature a genuine, authenticated material from the Apollo 11 spacecraft and are priced at $750 (Rs 61,365). Then there is also the Fisher Bullet Space Pen, one of the company’s most popular pens that has a place in the permanent collection of the New York Museum of Modern Art.

A favourite of US Presidents, A. T. Cross is one of the oldest pen makers in the world, founded in 1846. George H.W. Bush, George Bush and Barack Obama—all preferred various Cross pens. In a break from tradition, the inimitable Donald Trump opted for the humble Sharpie. Current US President Joe Biden began his tenure by signing 17 executive orders, with his pen of choice by A. T. Cross. Over the years, different Presidents have used not one but several pens to sign important orders and then handed them out to staff as historical artefacts. While Cross fountain pens are available at $25-$200, some limited edition ones can cost a lot more. For instance, the limited edition launched to celebrate the company’s 170th anniversary in solid gold finish and restricted to 170 pieces was priced upwards of $5,000 (Rs 4 lakh).

There is something special about putting pen to paper, no matter how much you may wave your stylus. Little wonder the luxury pens market is growing at a CAGR of 5 per cent and is expected to be worth $3.27 billion by 2028 from $2.33 billion in 2021, according to a report by The Insight Partners, a market research firm.

@smitabw