It was one of the defining moments in history. Chinese Tang and Abbasid forces were ranged against each other on a sweltering day in July 751 in what is known as the Battle of Talas. The actual outcome of the battle is immaterial, for what matters is that the Abbasid
There is a certain intrinsic flamboyance about Italian design. Just like German pens are known for their engineering, Japanese pens are known for the finesse of their nibs, the Italian pens are known for the joie de verve they exude. Yes, I know I am at fault here for oversimplifying
It had originated in the court of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in Palermo, Sicily. Giacomo da Lentini, credited with having brought it into being and in its earliest forms, it was restricted to expressing courtly love. However, by the time of the Renaissance, the Sonnet had evolved into
Ivano Ziggiotti was born in the province of Vicenza in 1962. By profession a craftsman, now retired, he approached calligraphy in 1996 when he enrolled in the Italian Calligraphic Association and attended numerous courses with teachers of high artistic value and high technical preparation, including Denis Brown, James Clough, Giovanni
Frank Limper is a Federalist in the real sense of the term – one who has set up a distinctive relationship of parity between two levels of Fountain Pen fanaticism, as a collector and a retailer; just like the federalist system does in terms of governance. Here he talks at
Qalam – the symbol of wisdom, that emphasises on knowledge and education – from which flows the divine art of calligraphy “A solitary tear suspended on the cheek of time” is how the poet laureate Rabindra Nath Tagore had described the Taj Mahal. As a matter of fact, so much
Renaissance, literally meaning re-birth, was a period of feverish advancements in a number of fields including art, culture, politics and economics. But more than anything else, it was and continues to be known for the magnificent art that was created in the period, especially by the three masters – Leonardo
Liliana Bühlow of the Secret Montblanc Society in an intimate tête-à-tête: Inked Happiness: A “Secret” Montblanc Society with 3.7 thousand members in Facebook – as the lady who made that possible, your enigma defies definitions. What is next, a book by Dan Brown? Kindly tell us about the group, its
Evelina Hristozova of Tibaldi talks pens, pandemics and posterity… Evelina Hristozova is the spirit that is propelling the legacy brand Tibaldi as it reinvents itself, seeking to keep its date with eternity. With her deep understanding of the consumer’s psyche and the intricacies involved in transforming a brand into
Evelina Hristozova is a post-graduate from the International School for Humanities and Social Sciences in Amsterdam (2000-2001). Before that she completed her master-graduate in Japanese Studies from Sofia University and Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo (1994-1999). Evelina has been living and working in Italy for the last 20 years, covering various
Leena Shrestha Menon runs the Fountain Pen Oasis www.penboutique.com which is to the fountain pen community today, what Milan was to trade industry and commerce during the renaissance. A hard-core fountain pen fanatic, Leena is highly regarded not only by her customers and the brands that she represents, but also
