Shanghai Stationary Ink - Queenmother of the West - 50ml

This bottle holds 50 milliliters of fountain pen ink from Shanghai Stationary, named after a deity from Chinese legend. The figure appears in texts spanning millennia under various titles—Divine Mother, Lady Queen Mother, Golden Mother of the Jade Pond—each reflecting a different facet of her role as a maternal goddess first recorded simply as Western Mother.

The ink arrives in a glass bottle with a secure cap, sized to fit comfortably on a desk without taking up the footprint of larger 80ml or 100ml containers. Fifty milliliters strikes a practical middle ground: enough to last through weeks or months of regular use depending on how often you write, yet not so much that the bottle sits half-empty for years while the ink degrades.

Shanghai Stationary produces their inks in China, drawing on the country's long history with calligraphy and brush work. The formulation is designed for modern fountain pens with cartridge converters or built-in filling systems. You'll use it with any pen that accepts bottled ink, refilling as needed by dipping the nib into the bottle or using a syringe for cleaner transfers.

The color takes its character from the mythology behind the name. Each time you fill your pen, you're working with a shade chosen to evoke the legend rather than to simply restate a familiar blue or black. The bottle itself is straightforward—no ornate flourishes, just clear glass so you can see the ink level at a glance and plan your next refill before you run dry mid-sentence.

This size suits someone who writes regularly but not obsessively, who wants a named ink with a story but doesn't need an archival supply. The bottle stores upright in a drawer or on a shelf, and the 50ml volume means you'll finish it within a reasonable timeframe if you rotate through several inks in your collection.