Mon Bon Voyage

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Aurora 88

circa 1950

Nikargenta Cap

Flexible Medium Nib

5 3/8″ : 13.7cm Capped

Serial No. 44 73 99

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Imagine you could send your Parker 51 away to college. Imagine that the school of choice was located in northern Italy. Your 51 would learn Italian, ride a Vespa, embrace soccer, develop a fondness for fashion and be exposed to cutting edge design.

Your pen would return refined, more elegant and oddly sexy. Your pen would return… an Aurora 88!

Now don’t get your tines bent out of shape. I don’t mean to besmirch your precious 51. A near and dear to me 51 has been a member of my own crew for over two decades.

But there’s no avoiding the fact that the (vintage) Aurora 88 is superior to the Parker 51. And why would this not be the case? There’s no doubt in my mind that the 88’s designer, Capitano Marcello Nizzoli, was charged with the single objective of creating a pen that could compete with the 51. He excelled in his assignment.

Aesthetically, the lines and details of the Aurora are simply more pleasing to the eye. The cap of the 88 is only slightly longer than that of the 51, but as the 88 is not burdened by a prone-to-discoloration jewel, the streamlined appearance gives an illusion of more length. The ring separating the turning knob from the pen body adds subtle yet important visual appeal. And there’s an ink window! Who doesn’t love an ink window?

Functionally, the Aurora trumps the Parker by virtue of a piston filling mechanism. There’s a reason that even modern converters use a piston – the system works and works well. Additionally, the 88’s nib features less hood and more flex. The more exposed nib provides for easier inspection and cleaning while the flex allows for creativity on all points of sail. It’s a fun pen!

Certainly I’ll never force my 51 to walk the plank. It enjoys permanent station. Still, I know that I will favor the 88 when assigning daily duties. In fact, I’m looking to fill a few more quarter berths with these fine Italians.

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Kritzler Oversize

circa 1925

Rosewood

Kritzler 14kt No. 8 Nib

Gold Washed Lever and Clip

Gold Colored Cap Band (unknown metal)

Barrel Imprint: L. Kritzler Pen Co.

5 1/4” Capped

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Although most of any particular pen’s history is unknown, I’m still attracted to vintage models specifically because they have a past. I contemplate the pens in my collection and I ask the unanswerable: Who first bought this pen? Where? Why? What has it written? How many owners has it known? Has it been well used? How has it survived?

I rarely bother to ask who designed the pen or who assembled it. Most of my pens were manufactured by large, well-known pen companies. I assume they were designed by brilliant engineers and assembled in comfortable factories by nameless yet well-paid employees.

The pen featured in this post, however, begs me to ask: Who made this pen?

There can be no doubt that the maker of this pen was named Kritzler. The name appears on the barrel, on the clip, on the lever and on the nib. Kritzler’s first initial, L, is part of the barrel’s imprint. The initials LK are found in a circle on the lever’s end.

That’s probably as much fact as can be culled, but that doesn’t stop us from looking for more clues…

From a 1917 World War I Draft Registration Card completed in New York, we know that there was a Louis Kritzler living at 2105 Clinton Ave., New York City (The Bronx). His birthplace is listed as Mishkoltz, Hungary, his date of birth as February 8, 1887. This Mr. Kritzler had a wife and child, was medium of build, had black eyes, black hair, was not bald, and was in possession of two eyes, four limbs and all commonly attached extremities. He was described as stout. Given the other two choices of slender and medium, we can surmise that stout was the 1917 politically correct term for overweight.

The registration card also lists Louis Kritzler’s place of employment as Armeny & Marion. The Armeny & Marion Co. made pens at one time. Their address of record in 1890 matches the address on the registration card; 90 Nassaue St., New York.

Adding to the growing body of circumstantial evidence is Mr. Kritzler’s occupation as listed on the card: Gold Pens

I’ve been led to believe that what we call a nib today was commonly referred to as a pen up until the 1920’s. This would imply that Louis Kritzler was actually a maker of gold nibs.

So we have an L. Kritzler associated with the pen industry. But does all of the above conclusively prove that the L. Kritzler who made, assembled or at least arranged for the creation of my pen was a Hungarian immigrant living in New York City in the early 1900’s? Not really. But just how many L. Kritzler’s could there be in the world? And how many of those are listed on official government documents as gold pen tradesmen? Probably only this Mr. Kritzler. For my money, he’s my man.

Now I can go back to the even more elusive questions: Who first bought this pen? Why? What has it written?…

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Note: Most, if not all, of the above information was garnered from a thread at the Fountain Pen Network found here. A special “Thank You!” to FPN User antoniosz who found and posted the registration card within that discussion.

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One hallmark of a great parent is his or her willingness to be supportive of the many roads down which a child, of any age, wishes to venture.

Throughout my nearly forty-six years and down more paths than I care to admit, I have been blessed with the world’s most encouraging father: Ragnar

Case in point: Until January 2009, I had kept my fondness of fountain pens firmly under control. All of that changed when I found the Fountain Pen Network and realized that A) The world is chock full of other fountain pen fans, and B) They were buyin’ up all the pens!

I jumped into the fountain pen arena with great and long overdue abandon. On January 7, 2009, I owned three pens that had taken over twenty years to “amass”. Today, less than two months later, I own at least twenty-four – not including the several that I’m waiting for in the mail. And at every turn of this wonderful new fountain pen trail, who has been consistently supportive and understanding? Me Father.

As far as I know, Me Father has little true interest in fountain pens or any of the paraphernalia that surround the subject. Yet he’ll listen to me ramble for hours about any pen related subject that happens to blip across the radar screen of my attention. But beyond listening, he’ll pay attention and actually participate in the conversations!

At one point I mentioned that there were two camps within the fountain pen world – those who post and those who don’t. I admitted to being firmly in the no-post camp and voiced my desire for a place to put a cap while writing.

Well, Me Father heard that as a call to action. A few prototypes and many a labored hour later, he excitedly sped to my house. I know he was speeding because I happened to be outside when he turned the corner, wheels a’screeching. He simply couldn’t wait to deliver the Pen & Cap Stand that you see pictured in this post.

With a base of polished petrified wood (Brazilian fir) and some well placed, highly lacquered driftwood (one of which he hand carved to create the pen bed), it’s a gorgeous and extremely useful work of art. It has a prominent home on my desk and I use it on a daily basis. It is beautiful to look at, holds my in-use pen and cap, and has a unique ability to lift my spirits just because it was made by Me Father.

Thanks Dad!

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