Rare Tortoise Shell Urushi Lacquer Fountain Pen Sale to raise funds for China Earth Quake Victims	What is Urushi?
	Urushi (pronounced "oo-roo-shee") is one of the most durable natural lacquers known to man. Urushi lacquered ornaments including bracelets have been discovered in Japan dating from the Jomon period 9,000 years ago. In the west, these objects are also referred to as "japaned" objects. Hardened urushi is water and acid proof, and also protects the object from heat, salt, mold and mildews and all types of weathering. It has been used on wood, pottery, bone, baskets, fabric and metal. Recently it has been successfully applied to the barrels and caps of fountain pens made of ebonite (black hard rubber) . Urushi is not only a durable varnish but is also one of the strongest adhesives while it is wet, which makes it perfect for decorating with gold powder (maki-e) gold foil (chinkin) or mother of pearl inlays (raden). It is so strong an adhesive that in the distant past urushi was used by hunters and warriors to fix arrowheads to their arrow shafts! This strength combined with the natural beauty of urushi lacquer ware is the reason it has been so popular for thousands of years.
The full horror of the devastating China earthquake began to emerge Wednesday as rescuers discovered whole towns all but wiped off the map, pushing the death toll well above 20,000. Military and police teams punched into the heart of the disaster zone, with 100 troops parachuting into a county that was previously cut off while planes and helicopters air-dropped emergency supplies. But the message that came back from this mountainous corner of southwestern Sichuan province was that town after town was flattened by the 7.9-magnitude quake that struck two days ago. The death toll has soared well above 20,000, but that toll is rising by the hour as more information comes in from stricken communities. "The losses have been severe," Wang Yi, who heads an armed police unit sent into the epicentre zone, was quoted as saying by Sichuan Online news site. China Pen king lament the loss of lives in Sichuan and to do our part we are donating a portion of our profits this month to buy food for them. Also we will send you this pen at our expense if you donate more than US$40 using this link below. Help us to provide food for the poor victims. Any amount will go a long way to help them	Pen Specification: Length= 14.5cm Width = 1.1cm Nib= gold plated medium Filling System = cartridge/converter