Rare RAF World War Two WW2 Capstan Inkwell 1930’s Tudor King’s Crown not Trench Art

We have been dealing in antiques for over 35 years and never seen one like this!

A very rare and unusual brass capstan inkwell made for the RAF sometime in the 1930’s. Looks a bit like a pith helmet!

You can see the badge of the RAF in the centre front.

Interestingly, this badge has the Tudor Crown above the eagle that was used in the 1930’s. The Tudor Crown was used during the reigns of Kings George V, Edward VIII and George VI.

The lid opens and closes nicely as it appears that it is connected to some type of anti-tilt mechanism. It works fine when this inkwell is sitting on a flat surface.

You can flick it open and it opens enough to get a dip pen inside and then you can push it to open more fully. This would have sat on a desk and it must have been someone important enough and of high rank that they had time to sit and write letters!

Dip pens were replaced by biros/ball point pens in the mid 1940’s.

There is a stamp stating “English Made” which was used in the 1920’s/1930’s. It is an unusual stamp because earlier in the century, “Made in England” had already been widely adopted.

This stamp also means that it was of professional manufacture and not home made!
Just imagine who would have used this inkwell and what it might have been used to write!

The underside is a piece of some type of metal (tin?) as shown.

It measures 11cm in diameter and sits just over 6cm in height.

In overall amazing condition as can be seen from the images provided.
There are some marks, stains, minor scratches, blemishes but please keep in mind that this is coming up to 100 years old and will have been used regularly.

The inner liner is missing but still looks great as it sits!

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