Product Description
Type Collectible Japanese maki-e fountain pen. These pens are hand painted with Japanese lacquer.
Product Name Bald Eagle. This was a limited edition of 700 pieces, and this pen is numbered 293/700.
Manufacturer and Year Namiki, Japan - 2001.
Length 5-9/16"
Filling System Fitted with a Con-70 converter. With nib submerged in ink, press the button on the end of the converter and let go. Wait 3 to 4 seconds and repeat about 4 times. The ink capacity is greater than a normal twist converter.
Color Black cap and barrel. The artwork shows a majestic bald eagle in a mountain setting, mid-flight and grasping a fish in its talons. The artwork is primarily gold, with the eagle's distinctive head in white, and some green iridescence on the wings.
Nib The 18k nib is marked medium, though Japanese mediums are finer than most western mediums. The nib is smooth and springy, and in excellent condition.
Condition Excellent condition, in box. There is a curved hairline crack at the very end of the barrel, visible under magnification. There are no chips out of the edges of this crack (see note below about this). Urushi lacquer is well-known for its strength and durability, but it is not impenetrable. There are no other cracks or chips in the pen. There is some microscratching present, but it's really minimal. The fountain pen comes in a nice lacquered wood presentation box, which also contains a bottle of Pilot black ink which features a bald eagle on the cap. There are some small scratches on the lacquered box, and a chip on one corner of the lid. The certificate of authenticity and informational pamphlet are also included. The artist signature, in Japanese, is crisp.
Note: We've seen this same pen recently, and that one also has a similar crack around the end of the barrel, but some of the lacquer has chipped off of that one, where this one is intact. Having seen two examples of this, we wonder if the crack is perhaps related to some step in the lacquering process?
Note in this picture the circular hairline crack around the end of the barrel:
