Title:
Fratelli Combintaion Pen And Pencil In Lignum Vitae With Gold Trim
Artist:
Sculpted Forest And Hank DiPasquale
Medium:
Sculpture - Lignum Vitae And 10 Kt Gold Trim
Price
$149.00
Dimensions
Not Specified
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Description:
http://www.sculptedforest.com
Survival of the fittest. The Fratelli Combination Pen and Pencil combines the engineering of a finely tuned machine with a magical wood that stands the test of time. It is the union of two brothers. A gentle twist toggles between a wood pen and click-operated pencil. The wooden pen has a modern design married with the tradition of a hefty writing instrument. It represents the end of strife and the beginning of a new cycle.
Lignum Vitae (Guaiacum officinale) is Latin for "wood of life", and its common name is Tree of Life. Named for its medicinal properties, its resin has been used as an anti-inflammatory agent and tea brewed from the flowers and leaves has been reputed as an energy restorative. Its resin also contains 15% vanillin (artificial vanilla) giving it a sweet aroma.
Lignum Vitae has bright evergreen leaves and lavender flowers, which attract small butterflies. The flowers develop into a bright orange fruit with a red seed inside. Its dense crown sits atop multiple, 30-ft, gnarled trunks with interesting green and white, flaking bark that leaves circular patches of concentric rings. The tree's heartwood is a drab brown when first cut, but exposure to the sun turns it a watery blue-green. This slowly growing tree is indigenous to the West Indies. Although it frequently grows in coastal areas, it is also common to lowland dry forests, woodland and thickets.
This wood is known as the heaviest and most dense in the world. Known as Ironwood, it was used in the late 1800's to make engine cogs and shafts for early oceangoing steamships. Shipbuilders later abandoned this practice because the wood comes apart under extreme pressure combined with temperatures over 150 degrees. However, Lignum Vitae was adopted as the material for silent-running propeller shaft bearings in submarines and has only recently been replaced by titanium. Water didn't bother the wood, though. Lignum Vitae is so resistant to moisture that remains of wood posts for Taino Indian dwellings in Tutu, St. Thomas have been carbon-dated to be over 800 years old. Because of its remarkable harness, Lignum Vitae is used to make chopping blocks, mallets, judge's gavels, and even a 19th century bowling ball. Legend has it that Camelot's Merlin had a staff made of Lignum Vitae because of its special magical powers.
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