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I bought my first Nakaya at the recent LA Pen Show and posted a photo essay of its arrival here: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/261993-my-first-nakaya-and-it-has-an-architect-point/ I knew pretty quickly that it wouldn't be my last urushi beauty. What I didn't know was exactly what would happen next. A dealer's email newsletter brought to my attention the Platinum Izumo Yagumonuri. I was thunderstruck by the included pictures. This had to be one of the most beautiful pens I had ever seen! When I initially developed the Nakaya urge, I did some research on Japanese pens. The Maki-e treatments were certainly lovely, but I never found one whose design seemed perfectly right for me. Some seemed too feminine, some were too pronounced a design for my "Boring Traditionalist Club" taste, but none seemed just right. Until I saw the Platinum Izumo Yagumonuri. You know what happened next! A few mouse clicks, a few days wait, and then came the ringing of my doorbell. "Hari317" did a wonderful job of illustrating the unboxing and documenting the packaging and presentation of Platinum's Izumo series. I won't repeat that which he did so well, which you can see at these two links: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/253070-platinum-izumo-glossy-tagayasan/?hl=%2Bplatinum+%2Bizumo https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/217681-platinum-izumo-28-akatame/ Rather, I'll comment on the unique beauty of the Yagumonuri. http://www.fototime.com/%7B495E92FB-77C1-46F8-8BBC-6CB040BD40BC%7D/origpict/DSCN7533.JPG Two things originally attracted me to the pen. First, the gorgeous design just oozed the serenity and beauty of nature that seemed so typically Japanese. The background is a deep deep brown so dark it is almost black. The design features gold, red, and blue liberally sprinkled with gold flecks. According to Platiunum's literature, the design represents "the sea of clouds and the heavens based on a motif of "thick clouds" (Yagumo) as found in the drawing on the ceiling of Izumo Taisha shrine". http://www.fototime.com/%7BF6AC13E1-1DF8-4AA5-8B95-E70DDDADC2F1%7D/origpict/DSCN7534.JPG http://www.fototime.com/%7B3D26FC2D-0F2A-497A-AE16-DD5E850F638E%7D/origpict/DSCN7535.JPG http://www.fototime.com/%7B51C550B7-DB90-41DC-A50F-8D55B0DB1236%7D/origpict/DSCN7536.JPG http://www.fototime.com/%7BF3574F13-94D2-4B65-829C-CDC7420E4B0C%7D/origpict/DSCN7537.JPG http://www.fototime.com/%7B180C2737-CCAB-463D-B536-3A9DB0947660%7D/origpict/DSCN7538.JPG http://www.fototime.com/%7B453212E3-1233-4F3F-A200-82BE41C7E920%7D/origpict/DSCN7540.JPG http://www.fototime.com/%7B4E909760-A24E-4041-9B84-8B7AB0ACB45F%7D/origpict/DSCN7541.JPG I don't think my pictures did an adequate job of caprturing the gentle curves of the pen, which is part of the attraction for me. The body of the pen has a very slight concave curve while the cap has a more pronounced convex shape. For those of you who don't remember their high school physics, that means the barrel is an "innie" while the cap is an "outie". Whichever description you prefer, I find the combination of a narrow waist and a bulging top to be really attractive. And before you ladies reading this call me a pig, let me proactively fess up. I yam what I yam. But I really was speaking about the pen. This is a large pen and might not be comfortable for smaller hands, or those that prefer smaller size pens. Here are some comparative photos that show the Yagumonuri next to pens you might recognize. First, a Nakaya Naka-Ai, which is almost as long but is smaller diameter http://www.fototime.com/%7BF4EA83A2-5CEC-4429-AF81-4A499461FD46%7D/origpict/DSCN7542.JPG Next, an Omas Paragon, which is much smaller. Remember my comment about "Boring Traditionalist Club" taste? :-) http://www.fototime.com/%7B64F7ED47-4257-4A17-9F33-4C65DAE8C4DC%7D/origpict/DSCN7543.JPG Even a Pelikan M800 is smaller http://www.fototime.com/%7B514466AB-B2ED-4012-9170-4752EB606B46%7D/origpict/DSCN7544.JPG The pen I have which is closest in size is the Edison Collier. These are similar size and diameter, though I find the gentle curves of the Yagumonuri to add a remarkable subtle beauty. http://www.fototime.com/%7B8614E0B8-721D-4CB3-ADBA-F2A2B729B174%7D/origpict/DSCN7545.JPG I chose a Broad nib, which as expected writes rather like a European Medium. I'm not sure a first fill produces a representative writing sample, so I'll save that for a future post. I hope you enjoyed seeing my new beauty. Thanks for reading!