Handcrafted in Italy’s Aosta Valley, this Grifos fountain pen is inspired by the emblem of the House of Medici: yellow-red fleur-de-lis against a dark blue background. Through its patronage of the arts in Florence, the Medici family had a powerful influence on the growth of the Renaissance. And this pen pays a beautiful tribute with its hard resin body—deep blue with a mother-of-pearl effect—engraved with fleur-de-lis and complemented by 18-karat-gold-plated accents throughout. During the time-consuming engraving process, the flowers were filled in two steps with both red-gold and transparent lacquers, then polished to appear as if under glass. A guilloche pattern on the grip section completes the pen’s regal, delicate aesthetic.
Note: This pen comes standard with a gold-plated stainless steel nib in fine, medium, or broad. For an additional $150, you can opt for an 18K solid gold nib in medium or broad.
The guilloche technique originated in the 18th century, and uses a manual diamond-cutting tool to engrave metals with intricate patterns. Over the years, the craft has been handed down from generation to generation using machines that are operated the same way they were three centuries ago. Rare among pen companies today, Grifos has an in-house guilloche machine that allows its experienced silversmiths to engrave on-site.
Estimated ship date is Nov 17, 2017 PT.
Payment will be collected at checkout. After this product run ends, orders will be submitted to the vendor up front, making all orders final.