This text represent the introductory chapter to the book "The Roaring 90's - the Exciting Decade of Pen Production in Italy" which is right now on my drawing board. I used this text for a seminary during the Washington Pen show in August 2023 also to highlight the differences in the way collectors and users approach the world of pens nowadays in comparison to the 1990s.
A few German models are typical of the Italian market only; a few others are marked "Fabbricato in Germania" on the cap and are identical to their German counterparts. Here is an attempt to better understand this interesting chapter of Montblanc's production
On June 12th I attended my third Utrecht Pen show and I must say that the organizers demonstrated how the two essential aspects of a successful pen show are: public and exhibitors
In the early 1990s the passion for fountain pens experienced a powerful revival in Europe and in Italy in particular.
Pen collecting became a very fashionable hobby and many Italian manufacturers started producing their first limited editions, which flanked their standard production.
Pen makers such as Delta, Stipula, Visconti, Marlen, Montegrappa, Tibaldi, Omas and a few others, manufactured some of their best products ever.
Publicity creators of the past often found a powerful source of inspiration in the world of animals, exploiting this realm of images and logical association to create refined and sophisticated advertising messages.
Fountain pen collectors and users prefer smearing their fingers and struggling with ink bottles instead of adopting pens with a cartridge filling mechanism.
