Japanese pocket ball-pen, brass

A ballpoint pen held within a brass case, from a small and long established workshop in downtown Tokyo, where each piece undergoes at least 10 separate pressings, between which it is annealed to relax any work hardening. Unvarnished, this pen comes from the 'wabi-sabi' school of thought: the raw brass will collect marks and scratches and develop a natural patina with use and time, especially if kept, as intended, in a pocket or cluttered hand bag.