WATERMAN SAFETY WITH FIGURAL CAP- Guido Reni's Aurora

This is a very precious and rare pen. The cap shows a figural decoration with a horse-drawn chariot, a cherub hovering above it and a number of female figures.

If you did not know the meaning of the representation, this might just seem a mithologial scene put together to make the decoration interesting and appealing. You have veils, horses and a sense of movement which would be enough to make the pen desirable.

But there is more than that. The cap replies a very famous painting by Guido Reni, whose title is "Aurora".

The "Aurora" is a large baroque ceiling fresco painted in 1614 by Guido Reni for the garden house, adjacent to the Palazzo Pallavicini , in Rome. The work is considered Reni's fresco masterpiece.

This fresco depicts Aurora (Dawn) leading Apollo in his horse-drawn chariot, surrounded by a chain of female “hours", to bring light to the world. The painting has also been described as triumphing Apollo being led by the Aurora. Above the chariot,  high in the sky, hovers Phosphorous (a cherub) with a torch. Zephyrs blow winds at either end.

So, this pen, seems to be more than a simple safety with figural overlay....it has a very strong evocative power..

Condition is very good/excellent with only minimal signs of brassing. The barrel is simple and definitely connected to the cap by a small decorative band with curls which  are replicated on  the cap, too.

The pen is also a very good writer, as it has a pleasant, flexible Waterman nib.

It is in working order and ready to write.