20 Sep, 2018
Inspired by one of the most significant thinkers and writers of the Islamic Golden Age, Montblanc’s tribute to Ibn Sina, also known as ‘Avicenna’ pushes creative boundaries to tell the story of a major historical figure who made countless contributions to medicine and the European Renaissance.
The coral color on the cap and barrel is inspired by a portrait of Avicenna while the cap’s graphic pattern evokes drawings from “The Canon of Medicine” (published in 1025), a medical encyclopedia written by Avicenna which set the standards for medicine in Medieval Europe and the Islamic world, and was used as a standard medical textbook through the 18th century in Europe. The Barrel, made out of black mother of pearl, further pays tribute to the Canon of Medicine which introduced the medical effect of the Mother of Pearl.
The shape of the barrel and cone is inspired by the Avicenna Mausoleum which was named in his honour, while the nib is enriched with fine engraving Inspired by Caduceus, a symbol of medicine, paying tribute to the legacy of Avicenna in medicine.
Limited to just 65 pieces worldwide, the Montblanc Avicenna LE65 writing instrument takes its cue from the 650 compound drugs listed in The Canon of Medicine’s Formulary Book 5, one of the earliest references of compound drugs in history.
With his contributions ranging from medicine, psychology and pharmacology to geology, physics, astronomy, chemistry and philosophy, Avicenna was a true polymath of the Islamic Golden Age.
