Value of Lee Kuan Yew’s fountain pen revealed
A silver Montblanc fountain pen that belonged to Singapore’s founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew has been put up for auction. It is estimated to be worth between $23,000 and $39,000, Qazinform News Agency reports, citing Singapore auction house Hotlotz.
The Montblanc Meisterstück No. 146 features a sterling silver body and cap, an 18-karat gold nib and an engraving reading “SM Lee Kuan Yew,” referring to the period when the politician served as Singapore’s senior minister. The starting bid is approximately $15,600.
According to the auction house, the pen was previously sold at the Lee Kuan Yew Family Collection charity auction in July 2003. At the time, it was estimated to be worth between $3,100 and $4,700.
The pen is one of the highlights of the Interiors & Collectibles: August, Fine Art Focus auction. The sale also features works by Singaporean artists Chen Wen Hsi, Ong Kim Seng, Chua Mia Tee and Iskandar Jalil, as well as pieces by Takashi Murakami, Henri Chen KeZhan, Choo Keng Kwan, Hong Zhu An and Lei Han.
The auction is being held exclusively online. Bidding will close on Sunday, August 16, from 6:00 p.m. onwards. The lots will be available for physical viewing at the Hotlotz saleroom in Singapore until August 15.
Lee Kuan Yew served as Singapore’s first prime minister from 1959 to 1990 before becoming senior minister and later minister mentor. He died in March 2015 at the age of 91.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that a 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus skeleton had been put up for auction in the United States with an estimated value of between $30 million and $40 million.
