Tambootie and Rhodium Slimline Wood Twist Pen

This slimline wood pen is hand-turned from Tambootie wood and Rhodium-plated Artisan brand parts.

Tambootie (or tambuti) is a small African tree with an average height of 30' and a fluted and often hollow trunk. Heartwood is rich brown with distinctive dark brown to almost black veins. The wood is oily to touch, with a pale to bright yellow sapwood. The grain is straight to slightly irregular, with a fine even texture: reddish-brown with darker streaks, a satin-like lustre and extremely fragrant sweet, spicy smell. The oily timber exudes a white, poisonous latex when freshly cut, and campfires that burn tambuti fuel give off noxious fumes contaminating meat or other food grilled on the flames or coals. The latex is used as a fish poison, and applied to arrow-tips.Rhodium is a hard silvery white and durable metal that has a high reflectance. The primary use of this element in automobiles as a catalytic converter. Plated rhodium, is extremely hard and is used for optical instruments. This metal also finds use in jewelry and for decorations. It is also used as a filter in mammography systems because of the characteristic x-rays it produces. It is used in high quality pen surfaces due to its high-resistance characteristics. As of October 2007, rhodium cost approximately eight times more than gold, and 450 times more than silver.

Rhodium has been used for honors, or to symbolize wealth, when more commonly used metals such as silver, gold, or platinum are deemed insufficient. In 1979 the Guinness Book of World Records gave Paul McCartney a rhodium-plated disc for being history's all-time best-selling songwriter and recording artist. Guinness has also noted items such as the world's "Most Expensive Pen" or "Most Expensive Board Game" as containing rhodium.

Price for this pen: $35.00