Opus 88 Zodiac Rat Fountain pen

The founder of Opus 88 has over 40 years of experience in manufacturing pens, and is now integrating all his techniques and craftsmanship into creating a line of Zodiac fountain pens with a very unique design.

The 12 Chinese zodiac signs refer to the 12 unique animals that correspond with the 12 Earthly Branches in conjunction with one’s birth year. The animals are Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. In Chinese tradition, the start of each lunar new year means a new animal becomes the zodiac sign for the year, with each animal replacing one another in a twelve-year cycle.

Opus 88 will release fountain pens in honour of each zodiac sign (though not necessarily in the zodiac order). The 12 zodiac signs are represented by 12 unique animals, and Opus 88 plans to use different materials, manufacturing methods, as well as design to bring out the uniqueness and zest of each zodiac sign in a fountain pen.

The body of the Opus 88 Zodiac Rat is treated using the negoro method by artisan Lai Ming-chun, who is a disciple of acclaimed Taiwanese artisan Huang Li-shu. Negoro-nuri style lacquerware, which originates from Japan’s Wakayama prefecture, refers to a coat of red lacquer applied over an undercoat of black lacquer. It is a traditional Japanese lacquering method.   

The Opus 88 Zodiac pen is available with a gold coated steel nib and an 18 kt gold nib.

The pen uses a cartridge or converter and comes with a lifetime warranty.

Opus 88 is a Taiwanese company. The name Opus was choosen because the company tries to tell the pen user that they are good in using different materials to create pens (materials like brass, wood, shell, sterling silver, acrylic, ebonite, etc.). The number 88 is a reference to the year the company was founded. The symbols in the logo are the Chinese word fort he family name of the company ‘’Hsu’’.