Fountain Pens. Penne Stilografiche. (English and German Edition) [Paperback]

Alex Fortis (Author), Antonio Vannucchi (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Italian (translation)
Original Language: Italian

Product Details

• Paperback: 142 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (November 1, 1995)
• Language: English, German
• ISBN-10: 0811810836
• ISBN-13: 978-0811810838
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,131,612 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fountain pens from 1870s through 1950s, December 3, 2001

By 

Larry S. Bonura - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fountain Pens. Penne Stilografiche. (English and German Edition) (Paperback)

A beautifully produced small book with more than 100 color photos of fountain pens from the United States, Germany, Great Britain, and Italy. Included are pens designed by Waterman, Parker, Montblanc, Shaeffer, Omas, Ancora, and Pelikan.

While the short history of fountain pens and pen manufacturer histories are in English, the photo captions are in both English and Italian. The history of fountain pens and the artisans who developed them is drawn with a broad stroke from Egyptian history to the 1950s, including the 1884 patent by Waterman for the first truly workable ink feed fountain pen, the fountain pen's heyday in the 1920s, and its resurgence over the past few years.

A brief history of several pen manufacturers concludes the book, and includes a look at United States makers Waterman, Parker, Shaeffer, Wahl-Eversharp, and Conklin; German manufacturers Montblanc and Pelikan; English-United States maker Mabie Todd; English designer Conway Stewart; and the Italian firms of Aurora, Omas, Ancora, and Columbus.

A nice reference book and eye candy for the collector and an inexpensive introductory text for those looking at beginning collecting. Nothing in the book talks about how to collect and the like. This is just a pretty book with photos of some exquisitely made fountain pens.