MB WE 1993 Imperial Dragon

[Linger]

Can somebody perhaps please help me understand what this edition is doing in the series? Which writer(s) is it referring to? What was MB’s explanation in 1993? Or later? I just don’t get it…

[Doug1426]

Supposedly it was a variant of the Agatha Christie pen, limited to just the Asian market.

[como]

Dragon is not part of the Writers Edition.

1992 - Ernest Hemingway 

1993 - Agatha Christie 

1994 - Oscar Wilde 

1995 - Voltaire 

1996 - Alexandre Dumas 

1997 - Fyodor Dostoevsky 

1998 - Edgar Allan Poe

1999 - Marcel Proust

2000 - Friedrich Schiller

2001 - Charles Dickens

2002 - F.Scott Fitzgerald

2003 - Jules Verne

2004 - Franz Kafka

2005 - Miguel de Cervantes

2006 - Virginia Woolf Writers

2007 - William Faulkner

2008 - George Bernard Shaw

2009 - Thomas Mann

2010 - Mark Twain

2011 - Carlo Collodi

2012 - Jonathan Swift

2013 - Honoré de Balzac

2014 - Daniel Defoe

2015 - Leo Tolstoy

2016 - William Shakespeare

2017 - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

2018 - Homer

2019 - Rudyard Kipling

2020 - Victor Hugo

2021 - Arthur Conan Doyle

 

[Linger]

Thanks como, I appreciate that, but i have an older version of an official Montblanc booklet (hardcover, full color, quite nice - Amazon has copies) called "Montblanc Collectables - Creations of Passion" and in there it is officially listed as a 1993 launch.

 

But Doug1426 might be correct - the pen looks very identical to the Christie, the dragon replacing the snake obviously.

[Michael R.]

It is an alternative version of the Christie for the Asian market. A more positive reaction was expected there for a dragon theme pen fearing bad luck with a snake theme.

 

Cheers

 

Michael

[como]

20 hours ago, Linger said:

Thanks como, I appreciate that, but i have an older version of an official Montblanc booklet (hardcover, full color, quite nice - Amazon has copies) called "Montblanc Collectables - Creations of Passion" and in there it is officially listed as a 1993 launch.

 

But Doug1426 might be correct - the pen looks very identical to the Christie, the dragon replacing the snake obviously.

 

20 hours ago, Michael R. said:

It is an alternative version of the Christie for the Asian market. A more positive reaction was expected there for a dragon theme pen fearing bad luck with a snake theme.

 

Cheers

 

Michael

@Michael R. @Linger I didn't know that Dragon was officially part of Christie. Thank you! Were there any dragons in Agatha Christie's novels? If not, it would be a bit strange...

[The Mustard]

@Doug1426 is correct, it was produced as an alternative to the Christie for The Asian market. As far as I remember it was produced in the same volumes as the Christie for the vermeil (4810) and standard (30,000) versions. It is therefore a strange part of the writer’s series but is a part of the series although I do know collectors in denial of that view!

[Cyrille81]

The sterling version was produced at 5000 copies and the solid gold version was produced at 888 copies.

 

http://www.stilusaurea.com/portfolio/montblanc-imperial-dragon-silver/

http://www.stilusaurea.com/portfolio/imperial-dragon-888/

 

And some explanations about the Imperial Dragon series on the Stilusaurea website:

After the success obtained in 1992 with the Hemingway pen (first Montblanc belonging to the writers limited edition series) MB launched in 1993 a new model dedicated to the english novelist Agatha Christie based on the classic style of the early 1920s. Two versions came out: one in 925 solid silver and the other one in 925 Vermeil. The same year (1993), MB decided to launch, specifically for the eastern market, a special version decorated by an elaborately made dragon clip. In this case there is a 925 silver version and another version in 750 solid gold limited to 888 pieces worldwide. Today, after more than 20 years, these pieces are highly appreciated by Montblanc collectors all around the world and the prices of these writing instruments, especially if in perfect condition and complete with all the original packaging and documentations, are greatly growing.

[Michael R.]

@como I would not call it officially part of the Christie; more like an alternative series or version of a similar model.

 

Cheers

 

Michael

[como]

19 minutes ago, Michael R. said:

@como I would not call it officially part of the Christie; more like an alternative series or version of a similar model.

 

Cheers

 

Michael

@Michael R. That makes sense. Thank you! Montblanc really got the snakes right. The dragon is harder to do. They often look too ugly, scary or just pompous. I can be open for a dragon if done well 😀!

[fpupulin]

Hard to say that the Imperial Dragon is part of the Writers Edition series...

 

The 1993 edition was dedicated to Agatha Christie, and like the Hemingway before, and all the other pens of the Writers Edition after this, it is "signed" on the cap with the name of the author.

 

Now, according to Stilusaurea website, "The same year (1993), MB decided to launch, specifically for the eastern market, a special version [cursive is mine] decorated by an elaborately made dragon clip ...". Actually, a "special version" of what? Not of the Christie, as the cap is not decorated with the author signature, but with the text Imperial Dragon in a fantasy handwriting instead.

 

So, for 1993, in my view Montblanc launched only a single pen of its Writers Edition, the Agatha Christie. There is nothing like another Agatha Christie for the Asian market, or it would have a dragon clip with the Christie signature. 

 

The Imperial Dragon is simply a pen made with the body of the Agatha Christie, but with a different clip, nib, and cap decoration. The pen has no reference to any known literary author, so could hardly seen as one of the Writers Editions series.

 

Please note that I am not discussing neither the quality of the pen nor its aesthetic appeal, but only its belonging to a certain set of objects called Writers Edition. 

[The Mustard]

MB do consider the Imperial Dragon to be part of the writer's series. This image is taken from the Marquis de Pompadour information booklet and summarises the limited edition pens issued up to that point - the dragon is included with the writers.  It does seem counter intuitive though I have to agree. 

[como]

Very interesting read here. After reading all above posts, I agree with @fpupulin Franco that I don’t consider it part of Writers Edition, even though some publications may indicate otherwise. For me, “Imperial Dragon” is not a writer, and there is nothing on the pen to indicate Agatha Christie. So it’s just a special release that is somewhat associated with the Christie release. It would be more Writers Edition appropriate if there is dragon in Christie’s books AND it’s marked as Agatha Christie.

Of course one can say that if MB says so, then it’s so. But I personally can’t consider the Dragon part of WE. This is a case where personal disagreement has some merit.

[lionelc]

reminded me of the thread you started @Michael R.- still has some of the best 1993 release pics around 

 

[bvanlent]

Ever consider that MB considers The Imperial Dragon a part of the Writers Series so it can sell another rather expensive pen?  Bottom line: It ain't got nuthin' to do with a writer, especially Agatha Christie.  Maybe if I lived in Asia I might consider adding it (maybe), but it makes no sense to me otherwise.  MB also released more elaborate versions of a number of Writers Series models like William Shakespeare, Brothers Grimm, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.  Do you have to collect the less expensive more muted versions of those models AND the more elaborate versions to be a completist?

[Zdenek]

In "Montblanc Collectables - Creations of Passion" Imperial Dragon is listed in the Writers Editions.

[ak47]

Imperial dragon was realised because in Asia market the snake is not a lucky sign. The dragon is it. 

[niksch]

I have both.  The Agatha with the snake clip has a snake head on the nib. The Imperial Dragon has a dragon head on the nib.  Otherwise they are practically identical.