Fountain Pens: The Collector's Guide to Selecting, Buying, and Enjoying New and Vintage Fountain Pens [Hardcover]

Jonathan Steinberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1994

A guide to collecting fountain pens features advice on finding, assessing, and buying antique, classic, and intricately designed pens, including the 1920 Orange Parker Duofold and the 1934 Mont Blanc.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

The product of a long search for better writing instruments, fountain pens proliferated in this century. Indeed, they dominated the writing utensil market until the post-World War II rise of the ballpoint. They are still considered to indicate a preference for quality over convenience. They're status symbols, and so today's desk sets disguise ballpoints as fountain pens. Produced during a time when illustration and embellishment were prized, they often resembled the jewelry of their era in their fine crafting and artistic appearance. Manufacturers marketed fountain pens as much on their looks as their performance, but Steinberg points out that the pens also facilitated a more artistic, individualistic script. His colorfully illustrated volume is a valuable addition to popular culture and collectibles collections alike. Mike Tribby

Product Details

• Hardcover: 80 pages
• Publisher: Running Press; 1St Edition edition (March 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561382213
• ISBN-13: 978-1561382217
• Product Dimensions: 12.1 x 9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #376,916 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sometimes a pen is just a pen. (But not every time....), October 19, 2000

By 

M. Allen Greenbaum (California) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fountain Pens: The Collector's Guide to Selecting, Buying, and Enjoying New and Vintage Fountain Pens (Hardcover)

Anyone who enjoys the beauty and mechanics of fine fountain pens will enjoy this volume. The book contains dozens of beautifully photographed pens, most from 1900-1940, a golden age for fountain pens. The intricately engraved and filigreed metals and hand-painted plastics are well presented, with brief descriptions of each pen. Most of the pens are beyond the budget of anyone but the most serious collector, but their allure is captured well.

The emphasis on collecting rare pens limits its scope and appeal: Interesting (but less valuable) pens of the post-World War II period are largely ignored. However, this is one of the few book s on pens, and the beautiful merging of form, function, and fanciful embellishment is evident on every page. There is a brief history of fountain pens, focusing mainly on mechanical advances. Some of this description is too dense, and the inclusion of diagrams from the period is interesting but not very instructive for the non-collector. Includes names of dealers (and even fountain pen clubs), a guide to what is repairable in a used pen, and histories of pen manufacturers. Recommended especially for collectors, and generally for people interested in how design and craft can elevate the aesthetics of an everyday object.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A useful guide for serious fountain pen collectors., November 10, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Fountain Pens: The Collector's Guide to Selecting, Buying, and Enjoying New and Vintage Fountain Pens (Hardcover)

I have been collected fountain pens for 7 years, and I always would like to find some books which can improve my knowledge and skill of collecting. This book is compendious, but contains every basic concepts that a pen collector must have. It is usuful and beautiful. Some firends of mine want to buy this book, but it is out of stock for a while. I hope it can back to stock soon.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Colorful guide for novice pen collectors, August 21, 2010

By 

WA Howard - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Fountain Pens: The Collector's Guide to Selecting, Buying, and Enjoying New and Vintage Fountain Pens (Hardcover)

Steinberg's catalog of top-end pens, advertisements and clearly written descriptions is superbly printed and delightfully presented in an easy to follow style. His comparison of manufacturing materials among different makers makes one appreciative of the in-depth research that went into this publication. The book is informative and makes the reader feel that obtaining some of these spectacular pens is not beyond one's reach. The additional section which lists desirable pens produced throughout the world makes it even more valuable to the beginning collector who may not be aware of how extensive international fountain pen production was and still is. This is an essential collector's resource.