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Hadrian was one of history’s most powerful and respected rulers. As one of the ‘five good emperors’, he reigned during an epoch viewed by chroniclers as the happiest of the ancient periods. Starting in 117 A.D., Hadrian ruled for 21 years over an empire spanning three continents. Hadrian ended his predecessors’ expansion politics, stabilized the provinces and became a great emperor of peace and prosperity. His legacy was immense, as Hadrian invested in infrastructure and the arts in all parts of his enormous realm. It wasn’t only Rome and Athens that had him to thank for new buildings and comprehensive restorations, but many other cities of his empire as well. The barrel created from matte Egyptian basalt features an artfully hand-carved peacock. It is believed that these magnificent birds, regarded as symbols of immortality, were once part of the original decoration of Hadrian’s mausoleum. The winding circular decoration of the cone and cap ring on this edition represents Janus, the Roman god of all beginnings and endings, while the shape of the 18K solid white gold cap top and cone reflects, with its various levels, the dome of the Roman Pantheon. In the place of the round oculus of the dome, the Montblanc emblem in mother-of-pearl decorates the center of the cap top. In reference to the Eleusinian Mysteries, the clip is artfully designed in the shape of a ripe wheatsheaf, the main attribute of the goddess Demeter. The handcrafted 18K gold nib is also decorated with the Hadrianic phoenix with a halo and laurel leaf in an artful engraving.
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