The Emperor Collection is our considered reimagining of silvertip.
Silvertip is drawn from Meles meles — the Eurasian badger, commonly marketed in the West as "European badger." In reality, this species is widely distributed across China, where its diverse ecosystems and complex terrain yield hair of exceptional quality. Today, all commercial silvertip is sourced from China; anyone who tells you a knot is made of "European badger" is repeating a marketing myth.
Silvertip has a silken feel. Unlike the processed gel tips of finest two-band, silvertip is naturally soft — its only shortcoming is intrinsic to the hair itself.
Because the hair is so exceptionally fine, silvertip has a naturally weak backbone.
For the Emperor series, we hand-select silvertip hair with a thicker shaft, which partially addresses that deficit. We then further reinforce backbone through a higher knot density and a carefully tuned loft — all without sacrificing the luxurious, silken feel that defines silvertip.
I have personally tested Emperor E-1 prototypes for six months, iterating through multiple adjustments along the way. Yet a gap remains between where the knot is today and the ideal of a strong, decisive backbone.
We know how to close that gap. But doing so would mean compromising silvertip's natural feel — and that is a trade we refuse to make in this first release. So for the Emperor Collection's debut iteration, we have deliberately chosen not to deploy the backbone-enhancing methods already within our reach.
I believe that once you feel it, the natural feel of this knot makes the backbone question fade. You need only surrender to the luxury of its touch.