Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew’s fountain pen valued at US$23,000-US$39,000 up for auction

A silver Montblanc Meisterstuck No 146 fountain pen once owned by Singapore's founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew is set to be auctioned by Hotlotz with a starting price of S$20,000 (US$15,600). The pen, engraved "SM Lee Kuan Yew", was previously sold at a charity auction in July 2003 for an estimated S$4,000 to S$6,000. Hotlotz has valued the pen at a higher range, between S$30,000 (US$23,000) and S$50,000 (US$39,000).

Lee Kuan Yew, who served as the country's first Prime Minister from 1959 to 1990, is considered the architect of modern Singapore. After stepping down from his cabinet role in 2004, he continued to serve as Senior Minister until 2011. He passed away on March 23, 2015. Other items up for auction include works by notable Singaporean artists such as Chua Mia Tee, Chen Wen Hsi, and Lim Tze Peng.

The online auction will close on August 16 at 6pm. The South China Morning Post reported in 2003 that Lee's daughter, Lee Wei Ling, organized a similar auction in 2003 at Sotheby's to raise funds for a charity supporting troubled teenage girls. The previous auction, which included 88 items, fetched over $350,000.