Bonhams Pen Auction, June 11: The Wilmore Montblanc Collection

[Kid Parker]

Hi all,

 

I hope you don't mind if I mention Bonhams' upcoming pen sale. It's really something! It features 300 lots from the collection of Mr. Mel Wilmore, described by Montblanc's San Francisco boutique as Montblanc's top North American collector of limited edition pens, and one of the top six collectors worldwide.

 

The print catalogue will be ready in about a week. Bonhams sells the catalogues for $35 each, but I'll gladly send a gratis copy to the first 20 members who email me a request: ivan.briggs@bonhams.com. The online catalogue images are still being attached, and should be fully viewable in a week.

 

Sale highlights will preview in Hong Kong on May 23-28, followed by a full preview in New York on June 9 & 10. Whether you're bidding or just want to stop by and talk about pens, I'd love to meet some of you there!

 

Ivan

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/teabagslim/bonhamspenad.jpg

[Kid Parker]

Here's a selection of lots in the sale:

 

MONTBLANC: Meisterstück 149 Helmut Newton 75th Anniversary Limited Edition 75 Fountain Pen & Watch

MONTBLANC: Meisterstück 149 75th Anniversary Solid Gold Skeleton Fountain Pen & Automatic Watch, Limited Edition 75

MONTBLANC: Airbus A380 Skeleton Limited Edition 380 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Art of Porcelain Limited Edition 10 Ballpoint Pen

MONTBLANC: Beethoven Limited Edition 9 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Charlie Chaplin Skeleton Limited Edition 88 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Flag of Mexico Skeleton Ateliers Privés Limited Edition 15 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Flag of Russia Ateliers Privés Limited Edition 23 Skeleton Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: François I Ateliers Privés Limited Edition 8 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Greta Garbo Commemorative Limited Edition 100 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Herbert von Karajan Limited Edition 95 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Hommage à John Harrison Skeleton Limited Edition 333 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Ingrid Bergman L'Attrice Limited Edition 75 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: John Lennon Limited Edition 70 Skeleton Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Juilliard Centennial Celebration Limited Edition 100 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Magical Black Widow Ateliers Privés Limited Edition 8 White Gold & Diamond Skeleton Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Magical Black Widow White Gold Limited Edition 88 Skeleton Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Mahatma Gandhi Limited Edition 241 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Miyamoto Musashi Limited Edition 77 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Otto von Bismarck Limited Edition 71 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Qing Dynasty Precious Version Limited Edition 88 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Qing Dynasty Limited Edition 2002 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Sakura Limited Edition 333 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Sakura Limited Edition 88 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: 4th of July Limited Edition 56 Skeleton Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: White House Limited Edition 43 Skeleton Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Stars and Stripes Limited Edition 50 Skeleton Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: George Washington America's Signatures for Freedom Series Limited Edition 50 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: John Adams America's Signatures for Freedom Series Limited Edition 50 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Year of the Golden Dragon Diamond Creation Limited Edition 88 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Year of the Golden Dragon Emerald Creation Limited Edition 8 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Year of the Golden Dragon Ruby Creation Limited Edition 8 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Year of the Golden Dragon Sapphire Creation Limited Edition 8 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Year of the Golden Dragon Princess Cut Diamond Creation Limited Edition 8 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: 100 Year Boheme Collection Set of 3 Limited Edition 100 Fountain Pens in Solid Yellow, White & Rose Gold

MONTBLANC: Meisterstück Soulmakers for 100 Years 18 Karat Solid Gold Limited Edition 100 Set of 3 Fountain Pens

MONTBLANC: Soulmakers for 100 Years Starwalker White Gold Limited Edition 100 Fountain Pen

MONTBLANC: Rouge et Noir Limited Edition 100 Anniversary Fountain Pen

[ianmedium]

Thanks so much Ivan for such a generous offer, I have emailed you my details, hopefully I was in time!

[pansipotter]

Thanks for the generous offer, Ivan. I have emailed my details and fingers crossed I am one of the twenty!

[Chrissy]

Thanks Ivan

 

I have emailed my details too. I hope I am also one of the first twenty. I wish the auction was in London.....

[FrankvK]

will it become available as a pdf for download?

[BrandonA]

Thank you for this kind offer. Hopefully I'll be in the first 20.

 

Such a shame to see someone sell such a lovely collection. Are you able to say why it is coming on the market? I can only see a couple of reasons for selling: loss of interest, death, financial woes.

[Pen Nut]

Thank you for the offer to us here on the FPN I have also applied and will wait to see if I am successful.

 

Just a note to others that have, or are going to apply, if you copy and paste the address it contains a full stop after the 'com' in the e-mail address and this could return your mail to you at a later time without Ivan getting the notification.

[ianmedium]

Thank you for the offer to us here on the FPN I have also applied and will wait to see if I am successful.

 

Just a note to others that have, or are going to apply, if you copy and paste the address it contains a full stop after the 'com' in the e-mail address and this could return your mail to you at a later time without Ivan getting the notification.

 

 

 

Thanks so much for the heads up! I checked and I did leave out the full stop!

 

Good luck everyone on getting the catalogs and thank you once again Ivan for such a generous gesture!

 

 

[Kid Parker]

Thanks for your interest, all! Catalogues will be sent to you as soon as they're available. Please share your feedback with me, and show the catalogue to any friends who may be interested!

[Kid Parker]

will it become available as a pdf for download?

 

Hi Frank,

 

Next week I'll post a link to the online catalogue, and I'll ask our tech guys if they can create a downloadable pdf!

[Kid Parker]

Thank you for this kind offer. Hopefully I'll be in the first 20.

 

Such a shame to see someone sell such a lovely collection. Are you able to say why it is coming on the market? I can only see a couple of reasons for selling: loss of interest, death, financial woes.

 

Hi Brandon,

 

Not to worry - Mr. Wilmore is in excellent health, and fiscally quite sound. He is still very much interested in Montblancs, but now that he is retired, his focus is helping his granddaughter build her own Montblanc collection.

[rockspyder]

Wow... Wish I could be there!

Email sent as well, hopefully I am also still in luck...

[penguyinto]

This is a stunning offering. For many of the pieces, it may be a first and last chance to acquire. I will certainly be an aggressive bidder on a few of these.

 

Time to liquidate some art ......

[tenney]

Thanks, Ivan. I too am hoping that I'm in the first twenty. Looking at the online description of the lots, it looks like it's going to be a great auction! Congratulations.

[asaha]

It a huge pile of treasure

[Kid Parker]

Hi all,

 

Thanks for the enthusiastic response! All 20 free catalogues have been spoken for (I bent the rules a bit to accommodate some extra requests).

 

Here is a link to a pdf. Our chief photographer, Patrick Sumner, did a fine job, and I'd like to encourage any Montblanc fanciers to have a look at his work, especially on the later lots. Patrick started out indifferent to pens, but by the time he was done photographing them, he became a big pen fan! Such is the allure of a beautiful instrument.

 

http://forms.butterfields.com/pdf/20002_Pens_final.pdf

 

Here's a website link. Some images are yet to be uploaded, so I'd advise checking back in a day or two:

 

http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/20002/59313/#MR1_results_per_page=100&MR1_module_instance_reference=1&MR1_no_cache=umglstskkd

 

Very best,

 

Ivan

Edited May 14, 2012 by Kid Parker

[ianmedium]

Thanks so much once again Ivan, your email this morning made my day!

[Pen Nut]

Thanks so much once again Ivan, your email this morning made my day!

 

Sounds like you have made two Ians happy today Ivan !

 

Regards,

 

Ian.

[ianmedium]

Thanks so much once again Ivan, your email this morning made my day!

 

Sounds like you have made two Ians happy today Ivan !

 

Regards,

 

Ian.

 

 

Glad you got in in time as well Ian. Funny, am moving back to the UK after living in Canada for the past 13 years later this year and am thinking of somewhere up in your neck of the woods!