The Great Pen Race Page 2
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Pen fanciers and collectors tend to come from a widely diverse range of professional occupations, it's almost incomprehensible to think that many enthusiastic pen collectors think little of travelling World-wide to attend special fountain pen exhibitions, or going to auction sales for pre-viewing in order to personally 'eye-ball' the pens on offer, leading London auctions may attract bidders from as far afield as Japan, America, Australia, Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong, and even one or two from the UK and some European countries!
A world record sale of a single pen, a giant Dunhill Namiki Maki-e changed ownership at 183,000. British pounds in the year 2000.
Pen collector fairs internationally are generally well attended.
I enjoyed meeting and spending some time in the company of Hollywood veteran film maker Mike Medavoy, owner of Phoenix pictures whilst he was in London, he keeps a 'modest' pen collection (I wouldn't be surprised if his idea of 'modest' might be such as a few dozen classic Dunhill Namiki models) his book entitled “You're only as good as your next one” published by Atria books, makes great reading, giving a fascinating exclusive insight into the world of blockbuster Hollywood film making. His many films include such as 'Amadeus', 'The silence of the lambs', 'The Sting', and in my humble opinion the best film of all 'Miss Potter'.
The boom years of fountain pen manufacturing.
It is well documented that the patent for the first practical fountain pen was granted in 1884 to L.E. Waterman. That event triggered the great pen race, George Parker then patented the first mechanical filling pen in May 1904, this device incorporates the flat metal pressure bar which when depressed by the side lever, inflates or deflates the rubber ink sac, the aerometric filling method.
By the early 1900's the manufacturers were already experiencing a fast growing demand for their products which further escalated becoming a booming period of pen production.
In Britain this soon came to an abrupt halt, production was minimised by government imposed restrictions on raw materials along with the shortage of labour throughout the years of World War one, after those traumatic war years fountain pen production was resumed, recovering with increasingly growing demand, however, this recovery was once more short lived as the effects of the 1930's recession took it's toll on the industry.
1939 declaration of war, World War II and yet again fountain pen production was subjected to both governmental controlled limitations and a shortage of skilled workers. By the end of 1945 there was something of an inspired and spirited rekindling.
Throughout those years competitive rivalry had been rife, British companies being dwarfed by the big American fountain pen manufacturers had a hard struggle to survive against fierce market competitiveness.
Le coupe de grace of the fountain pen manufacturing era in the U.K. came in 1952 when the new Biro ballpoint pens were launched onto the market.
Among those most remembered of the few surviving British pen manufacturers from those times are, the Conway Stewart company, the De La Rue company, Parker pens, and the Mabie Todd Swan company, originally being an American company that opened sales premises in Britain in 1884 becoming British owned as of December 31, 1914, the date of the actual transfer of ownership was not clear owing to some confusion over the signatories, ownership transferred in January 1915.
