MAGAZINE . Passion pens • The Lord of the Rings: Montegrappa honours the saga of all sagas

The Lord of the Rings

Montegrappa honours the saga of all sagas

 
 

The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.
(J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring)

 
 

The Lord of the Rings

J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy world

It was 1937 when a manuscript began to take shape that would change reading and literature forever. With fountain pen in hand, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien began to map out the dense universe of The Lord of the Rings.

Generations later, the deeds of Frodo Baggins, Gandalf, Legolas, Boromir and Gimli are part of global folklore, with a cultural presence magnified by Peter Jackson’s film trilogy.

The pages of The Lord of The Rings are a journey through lands vast and terrifying, punctuated by moments of peril, glee and – above all – great camaraderie.

Set against a spectacular natural backdrop, majestic cities, epic battles, dragons and other curious creatures peel back the layers of a story for the ages.

 

The story begins with a birthday party for the hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, but things take an immediate turn when Bilbo announces his departure from the Shire, and hands his nephew Frodo a mysterious ring.

What first appears a gift soon proves a curse: the terrifying ring of Sauron, Dark Lord of Mordor. One can only be freed from its evil by throwing it into the fires where it was forged. Far away, at the summit of Mount Doom, Sauron’s all-seeing eye is a formidable opponent.

Accompanied by the wizard Gandalf and three brave hobbit friends, Frodo travels through different lands, encountering an endless gallery of characters along the way. At the Elven town of Rivendell, he seeks guidance from the wise Elrond. Here, an extraordinary meeting takes place and a fellowship is formed to destroy the ring and save Middle-earth.

So begins the great adventure of The Fellowship of the Ring, as we follow the journey of nine brave souls on a long and perilous journey to Mordor. Through Frodo, we discover the power of true friendship. Far from home, he must overcome terrifying odds, and distinguish between temptation and truth. By the end of his journey, Evil is defeated and he learns his true self.

Tolkien's pillar of literature finds its strength in his intricate construction of worlds. In Middle-earth everything has its own history. Family trees, maps, traditions, cultures, songs, poetries and even new languages are created to serve his narrative. Even those averse to fantasy cannot help but be dazzled by Tolkien’s craftsmanship and storytelling zeal.

 
 
 

EYE OF SAURON

A pen with dark powers

Like Tolkien, painstaking detailing and extravagant styling are Montegrappa hallmarks. A collection of writing instruments dedicated to The Lord Of The Rings combines artisanal skill with a reverence for Peter Jackson’s cinematic vision. Tolkien’s grand tale is worked into writing tools of magical quality.

“One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them.”The famous verse etched into Sauron’s One Ring is known to all. The Dark Lord’s great symbol of power was crafted by Elvish jewellers, and is replicated by modern-day craftspeople on the crown of Eye of Sauron. Montegrappa’s salute to Tolkien is handmade in Italy, with metal finishing inspired by the world of prestige watches.

 
 

Ballpoint, rollerball and fountain pen options feature striking matte-black visuals, with gunmetal-grey ruthenium trims separating hand-carved sections of dense black resin.

Fountain pens use an all-black, stainless-steel nib, fed by a cartridge-converter filling system. Each pen is presented in a gold-foil collector’s box wrapped in a well-travelled map of Middle-earth.

Aficionados will take particular joy from two special ‘Easter egg’ features built into the Eye of Sauron’s design. A pocket-clip uses mimics Sauron’s with high-grade Swiss Super-LumiNova® enamel. Its phosphorescent aura glows long after the pen’s work is done.

Another source of (de)light is the One Ring itself, which can be detached from the cap and worn as a pendant – or safely locked away.

 
 
 

And so, as we sit with pen and paper, at the mercy of our own imagination, Eye of Sauron is a reminder of Tolkien’s great lesson: “Good and evil have not changed since yesteryear, nor are they one thing among Elves and another among Men. It is a man's part to discern them.”