Our Sold Archive provides information to budding vintage fountain pen/writing equipment collectors and social history students.
Each fountain pen or piece of writing equipment forms part of the collective history of its period and has a history unique to that particular item. In the 1930’s a silver banded fountain pen (right) was purchased by estate workers, with no doubt hard earned wages, and inscribed to present as a silver wedding gift to the land owner. It was reported recently that, in the days before the National Health Service, when health care had to be paid for, a man pawned his fountain pen to raise funds to enable his wife to be released from hospital. A recently sold writing cabinet was originally a presentation piece to recognise 40 years of loyal service in a period when jobs were for “life”. Just three examples which only scratch the surface of the lifetime of memories held within each item. A treasure trove of history that no new fountain pen could convey.
Below, and on following pages, are all the pens in our Sold Archive, displayed in a random order. If you wish to search the sold archive, then the Search Catalogue page gives you an opportunity to do so. On other pages you can find the desktop items part of our Sold Archive, as well as lists of our current stock of pens and desktop items.
Conway Stewart The Universal Pen No.479 | Stock number: 5116 |
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Very Broad nib, Lever fill system. |
Sold |
This Conway Stewart No. 479 was made in England around 1939. Conway called it “The Universal Pen” combining the name with the number 479 as was their style at the time. Following the second world war they adopted the use of numbers only to denote differing models. “The Universal” was a popular line of the period. A good size vintage pen of jet black chased design and chrome trim, it sports the Conway emblem on the clip top and lever. This particular example is in good condition with a very broad Conway 14ct nib – not an easy width to find. It measures 12.7cm with cap on and 15.7cm with cap on barrel end. An ideal pen to use as an everyday writer or, considering its condition, add to a Conway Stewart collection. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. and bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request. | |
Waterman No.452 | Stock number: 5081 |
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Fine nib, Lever fill system. |
Sold |
This early vintage lever filling fountain pen, with silver filigree overlay, was made by Waterman around 1929. It is marked “Made in USA Sterling” on the barrel and has the “Ideal” lozenge on the lever. The cap band states “Waterman’s Sterling”. The silver filigree overlay is in good order with some wear commensurate with age. There is a small ding in the top of the cap and a minor mark near the original Waterman Ideal lever. The barrel lozenge is clear - there is some light reflection on the photograph. The bottom of the barrel states: “Waterman’s reg. US Pat Off. Made in USA”. The end of the barrel has the Waterman number of 452. The nib is a Waterman No. 2 fine point and is in good order - the text reads: "Waterman Ideal Reg. US Pat Off 2”. The clip has been replaced at some point and whilst it is a Waterman’s Ideal clip, it is of white metal rather than silver. However, as you will see from the photograph this does not detract from the overall quality of the pen. It measures 14cm with cap on and 17cm with cap on end of barrel. An excellent vintage pen which will grace any collection and yet also provide many years of writing service. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. and bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request. | |
Conway Stewart No. 388 | Stock number: 5075 |
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Medium nib, Lever fill system. |
Sold |
This Conway Stewart No. 388 was made in England around 1939. The finish is a mix of pale and dark green marble with rolled gold trim. It has the original Conway clip to the cap with two thin and one slightly wider cap band. The body has the original Conway lever and the inscription “Conway Stewart 388 Made in England”. The nib is a Conway 14ct medium point. There is minor age plating wear on the clip and lever but this is not significant. A fine looking vintage fountain pen in good condition with an attractive finish and the usual good quality Conway nib. An ideal pen to either add to a Conway Stewart collection or use as an everyday writer. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. and bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request
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English Button Filler - Blue, bronze and black marble | Stock number: 5338 |
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Medium nib, Button fill system. |
Sold |
This English made button filling vintage fountain pen cannot be attributed to any particular manufacturer but is typical of the English fountain pens of the 1930’s. The colour and pattern are most striking – a mixture of pale blue, bronze and black marbling with a gold tone trim. The nib is a “Conway 14kt 3N” with a medium point. It is a bit of a hybrid as this is obviously not the original nib as it is not a Conway pen, and perhaps not the original section, however the combination does work well and it is a pleasing nib to use. It is a fairly small pen measuring 11.9cm with cap on and 14.2cm with cap on barrel end. It is in good condition with a slightly stiff filling button but very little age wear. This stylish, interesting and unusual vintage button filler will provide many more years of service as an everyday writer. This vintage pen was not serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. but has passed our quality tests and will be further bench tested before despatch. Filling instructions will be sent with your order and a gift box is available free of charge on request. | |
Parker Duofold Senior | Stock number: 5096 |
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Medium nib, Button fill system. |
Sold |
This iconic Parker Senior Duofold fountain pen, also known as the “Parker Big Red” ,was made in the USA around 1929 and is a classic Parker fountain pen of the period. It is a very large vintage pen measuring 14 cm with cap on and 17.7cm with cap on barrel end. The cap sports the original gold plated Parker ball ended clip with the text “Pat.Sep. 5 16 Parker” and two cap bands. The barrel imprint is feint but states “Geo S. Parker Janesville. WIS, Duofold Fountain Pen, Lucky Curve, USA Pat4-25-11”. The “Lucky Curve” relates to the type of feed which was used by Parker until August 1928. From that date the Lucky Curve feed was replaced by a conventional feed but the barrel imprints continued to be used until stocks were exhausted* - hence this pen is likely to be late 1928 – 1930 as it has a straight feed. It has an excellent large Parker 14ct “arrow” nib however it is unlikely that this is the original Parker nib as the text reads “Parker 14k England 50/8”. It is the same size as the original nib and has a medium point. It fills by unscrewing the blind cap at the bottom of the barrel and pressing in the metal button – then releasing – leaving the nib in the ink for 5-10 seconds to allow ink to enter the interior sac. This classic Parker vintage pen is in good working order with minor age wear and, as a great writer, is an excellent purchase either for everyday use or to add to a vintage fountain pen collection. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. and bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request.
* Reference: Parker Duofold - David Shepherd and Dan Zazove - Surrenden Press 2006 | |
Abbey - Red and Bronze Marble | Stock number: 5246 |
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Fine to Medium nib, Lever fill system. |
Sold |
This unusual and stylish lever filling vintage fountain pen with its Art Deco style clip was made around 1930. The manufacturer is stated on the barrel as “W.F.P.Co. London” which possibly stands for The Wyvern Pen Company, who for more than four decades was an important UK pen manufacturer – producing fountain pens under a variety of names. It is called “The Abbey” and has a striking red and bronze marble pattern still with strong colours today. It was most likely an economy pen as the clip and nib are gold tone rather than gold plated but the nib has a pleasing fine to medium point and writes well. It is the first time I have come across a vintage pen of this name. It measures 13cm with cap on and 15.5cm with cap on barrel end. It is in good condition apart from some tarnishing to the clip and, now restored, will function well as an everyday writer. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. unless otherwise stated and are bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request. Filling instructions will be sent with your order. | |
Waterman W3 Light and Dark Green Pearl Striated | Stock number: 1543 |
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Fine to Medium nib, Lever fill system. |
Sold |
This Waterman lever filling fountain pen was made in England, probably at the Falcon Pen Works in Neasden, around 1946 shortly after Waterman commenced manufacture there in the U.K. It has an attractive light and dark green pearl striated design finish and gold fill trim. The green is slightly “greener” than is evident in the photograph which looks more grey/green. The barrel imprint reads “Waterman’s Made in England W3”. The nib text reads “Waterman 14ct.W3” and has a fine to medium point. The cap has one thick gold fill decorative band and the original Waterman clip. The pen overall is in fair to good condition. The “fair” relates primarily to the trim which has some brassing and surface age wear to the nib as can be seen in the photograph. It is priced accordingly. The cap and body have superficial age wear only. It is a pleasing size, slightly smaller than the W5 measuring 12.4cm with cap on and 15.1cm with cap on barrel end. A good vintage pen for everyday writing. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. unless stated otherwise and bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request and filling instructions will be sent with your order. | |
Unknown English Silver Eyedropper | Stock number: 5114 |
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Fine nib, Eyedropper fill system. |
Sold |
This rare eyedropper vintage pen is hallmarked London 1901. There is no maker's name. The repousséoverlay pattern is in a “Snail” design which remains well defined and the silver markings whilst rubbed are still reasonably sharp on both cap and barrel. It has a slip on cap and what is termed an over and under feed to the fine point warranted nib. Also it has a thin wire inserted into the end of the feeds at the point where they sit inside the barrel. Its function appears to be to aid a firm fit between both feeds. Whilst it is in working order the nib itself is not perfect but it is usable. It reads “Warranted 14c 0.585 followed by a Lion Rampant at the bottom”. There is a small nick at the top of the section at the back and some very minor wear to the section itself. It measures 13cm with cap on and 15.6cm with cap on barrel end. Overall it is in very good condition and it is rare to come across an English eyedropper of this quality and in this design. An excellent early pen to add to a collection or use as a working collector’s item. Eyedropper pens stems from the days when pens were filled by an eyedropper rather than a lever. It has a section thread which you unscrew to reveal an empty pen barrel. You use an eyedropper to pick up the ink from the bottle and drip it into the actual barrel of the pen. It comes complete with a modern day eyedropper and is a working collector’s item. Due to the technology of the period this is not a pen to be thrown around in your briefcase or handbag - there is a possibility that in such circumstances it will leak. It is better used for a desktop, top pocket, pen pot or purchased as a working collector’s item. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. and bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request | |
London Hallmark Chased Silver Overlay | Stock number: 5180 |
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Fine to Medium nib, Lever fill system. |
Sold |
This elegant vintage fountain pen with its chased silver overlay is hallmarked London 1930. It is overlaid on a hard rubber base as it was made at a time when plastic, with its bright marble colours, was not yet available. Gold and silver overlays were used on the basic hard rubber pens to provide a more “quality” item for the discerning customer. This particular vintage pen is a clipless model with a very attractive scroll chased overlay on cap and barrel with good strong hallmarks on both. The lozenge is clear and I particularly like the plain band at the end of the cap which contrasts nicely with the chased barrel below. There is some minor age wear in particular to the lever which I would say is a base metal replacement and a thin indentation which encroaches slightly onto the lozenge (as can be seen on the photograph) but overall it is in good condition and these slight imperfections are reflected in the price. The nib is a Warranted First Quality 14ct. with a fine to medium point. The cap when placed on the end of the barrel for writing sits comfortably and provides a good line. It measures 13cm with cap on and 16.2 cm with cap on barrel end. An excellent vintage fountain pen to either add to a collection or use as an everyday writer. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. and bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request
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Waterman 452 Basketweave | Stock number: 5262 |
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Medium nib, Lever fill system. |
Sold |
This fine silver filigree overlay vintage fountain pen was made in the USA by Waterman c1929. The silver filigree overlay pattern is called “Basketweave” and was produced in both a gold fill and sterling silver overlay finish. The cap has the Waterman “Ideal” logo and their patented “Clip Cap” ball ended clip. The rim of the cap is marked “Waterman’s Sterling”. The barrel has the original Waterman lever complete with “Ideal” logo. The top of the barrel is marked “Sterling Made in USA”. The silver is overlaid on hard rubber, the basic material used for a large number of fountain pens at the time. You will note that the far end of the barrel is clear of overlay (as it should be) and bears the words “Waterman’s REG.U.S. PAT.OFF. MADE IN U.S.A” engraved into the hard rubber. The very bottom of the barrel has the model number “452”. The nib is a Waterman No. 2 with a medium point and reads “Waterman’s Ideal Canada FDW 2”- given this it is possible that this is not the original Waterman nib – however it is in keeping. The barrel has a clear lozenge. This exceptional vintage fountain pen measures 14cm with cap on and 17.5cm with cap on barrel end. As you can see whilst it is an elegant pen - it is also a good size and a pleasing weight in the hand. It is in good condition with only minor age wear and is an excellent example of a top quality Waterman pen of the period. It will grace any vintage fountain pen collection and is also suitable to use everyday, providing many more years of writing service. All fountain pens are professionally serviced by Vintage Fountain Pens Inc. and bench tested prior to offering for sale. A further inspection is carried out before despatch. A gift box is available free of charge on request. Filling instructions will be sent with your order. | |
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If you would like us to try to source another copy of a previously sold item, please stating the stock number of the item in question, which you will see above its picture on the right.