All For One, And One For $750

“Like father, like son” doesn’t cut it when you’re paying $750 for a pen.

Montblanc, a maker of upscale pens, said Monday it is recalling pens and mechanical pencils that were supposed to be engraved with the signature of “The Three Musketeers” author Alexandre Dumas. The pens instead were marked with the signature of his son, a lesser-known author who shared his name. The company made 15,000 fountain pens with Dumas’ signature, 11,000 ballpoints, 4,000 mechanical pencils and 5,000 sets.

Montblanc doesn’t know exactly how many of items were sold to retailers and customers worldwide, but the company will spend more than $2 million to replace them with the correct signature.

The mistake was discovered by the owner of a Montblanc boutique in Toronto who was running a manuscript display that contained the senior Dumas’ signature.

Among other features, the Dumas’ pen has a sword-shaped clip and an 18-karat gold nib decorated with a French lily.