The wide-ranging sale at Hansons (17.5% buyer’s premium) at Etwall on February 21 included a 20-lot section of fountain pens which offered a brief overview of this largely affordable area of collecting.
Best by a distance was the c.1930 Dunhill Namiki pen, right. With gilt leaf and praying mantis decoration to the 5¼in (13.5cm) long, maki-e lacquered barrel, it sold to a Japanese buyer at £2900 against an estimate of £500-800.