The pen is mightier than the sword, and this writing instrument, made with Montblanc, might just be the mightiest of all.

Want to know what makes a masterpiece? Ask Montblanc. The maison, known for its expertise in crafting fine watches, jewellery and leather goods, has a collection of writing instruments called Meisterstück, which incidentally is German for the word “masterpiece”. Of course, you can’t just slap a word like that on something and expect it to become a masterpiece by association. Montblanc, however, has been perfecting its craft for over a century, and has been using the Meisterstück label to describe its writing instruments for almost as long.

Now, the maison has collaborated with James Purdey & Sons to create a special-edition fountain pen that boasts another level of mastery. Impeccably crafted from Turkish walnut wood and ruthenium-coated fittings with engraved chequering, this is a less a pen and more an objet d’art ­– if such a thing was possible from a writing instrument. That old adage from Mr Oscar Wilde about all art being quite useless? Rubbish. It does, of course, have a price tag to match – this isn’t something you would want to lend to the office pen-chewer. If the thought of that gives you anxiety, it might be something you use for display purposes only. Either way, it’s something special you can keep in the family for generations. And that’s why they call it a masterpiece.