Have you seen old pens and pencils and wondered if they were valuable? Depending on the age and maker they can be worth into the thousands of dollars.
The first maker of fountain pens was Lewis Edson Waterman. The first pen, considered a practical pen, supplied its own supply of ink in a continuous stream in the 1880s. That makes Waterman pens some of the most valuable collector items on the market. You will not find any of the first pens made but some dating from the 1890s did survive. The rarest being a number 20 pen which is worth around $1,000.
Other very collectible Waterman pens include ones designed with swirling snakes around it, gold filigrees and rose and black ripple patterns. Also keep your eyes open for a Waterman Patrician pen made from 1928-30.
The next best collector pens are those from George S. Parker. Parker was a teacher. He made pens for his students to use in classes and finally patented them in 1894.
Of the Parker pens, the most valuable is called the Lucky Curve. It has a bend at the head of the ink channel that prevents ink to flow in and out of the nib without leaking. That made it perfect for his student’s pockets. A Parker Lucky Curve pen known as the Duofold Big Red is considered the most collectible piece and also can be valued around $1,000. Other pens by Parker were ladies pens, a black pen often called the Black Giant and a Parker Vacumatic. The Vacumatic, from 1932 came with a matching pencil in a box.
The Conklin Company was the first company to make a pen filled with pumping ink up through the nib from a bottle rather than a dropper. This was made in 1903 and was later perfected by W.A. Schaeffer who projected a metal crescent that compresses into a small sac to the pump’s ink.
One of the big Schaeffer collector pens was a 2 ½ long thick pen for women made in 1930.
Valuable pens were also made of gold, silver and even platinum by Mont Blanc. Those made of solid gold and can go for $1,000-$5,000.
Turn of the century pens and pencils are hard to find but pens from the 1920-30s in good condition are very valuable.
It is important they are in working condition. It should run smoothly over paper when dry.
Collectors of these antique and vintage pens do not care for ballpoint pens, but do not despair as there are other collectors who only collect ballpoint pens.
A ballpoint pen uses replaceable ink in a thick tube.
Milton Reynolds first made them in mass production in 1945. They were considered the Miraculous Pen and 10,000 were sold on the first day of release.
Other fountain pen makers to keep on eye out for include Mable Todd & Dard and The Wahl Company. The Wahl Company makes mostly pencils but there are still pens around.
Novelty pens and pencils are also collected. Some pencils were made to be over 1 foot long; others were wooden with names of companies or events. Some even have celluloid clips.
If you decide to collect pens or pencils, flea markets, tag sales and eBay would be good places to start. Many pen collectors make it a habit of going through old desks and drawers looking for a collectible pen. Pens are easy to store so look everywhere.
Source: The Encyclopedia of Collecting
