Dolphin Pen Holder — Handmade Desk Piece, Large

A dolphin in mid-leap, handcrafted as a desk pen holder.

Details

• Handmade construction with weighted base
• Large size
• Hand-applied finish
• Holds pens, pencils and desk tools
• Suits a desk, study, office or reception counter

The animal

Dolphins have been a maritime good omen for as long as there are records of sailors. Greek and Roman writers describe them as guides and rescuers; Pliny recounts stories of dolphins carrying swimmers ashore. Sailors took a pod riding the bow wave as a sign of a fair passage, which was not entirely superstition — dolphins tend to be where the fish and the currents are, so their presence genuinely told you something about the water.

The bow-riding itself is not friendliness. They are surfing the pressure wave a moving hull pushes ahead of it, getting free forward motion — the same trick they use on the wake of large whales.