Pens

An image showing a variety of drafting pens and pencils from the Division of Medicine and Science.

Although simple drawing pens were the most popular tool for engineering drafting, catalogs from the makers of mathematical instruments that appeared around the turn of the 20th century indicate that pens for special purposes were also important in technical drawing. These included: extra-wide pens for making borders; angled pens for drawing curves; double pens and pencils for adding railroads to a drawing; pen handles with serrated wheels that created lines of dots; and tracers and prickers. Makers also modified the design of drawing pens, for instance providing a reservoir for ink or allowing the blades to be opened for easy cleaning.

This page of objects gives a sampling of pens used for engineering drawing. In addition, it illustrates some of the evolution in pen technology from drawing and dip pens to fountain pens to ballpoint pens.

Search term: *:* Topic: Drafting, Engineering Clear All

W. F. Stanley Lifting-Nib Drawing Pen

This 5-7/8" steel, brass, and ivory drawing pen has a spring inside the point to draw the tips of the point together when the screw is tightened to make a narrower line. The point is also jointed, so when the screw is removed, one side of the point may be opened to a 90° angle.
Description
This 5-7/8" steel, brass, and ivory drawing pen has a spring inside the point to draw the tips of the point together when the screw is tightened to make a narrower line. The point is also jointed, so when the screw is removed, one side of the point may be opened to a 90° angle. The handle is marked: STANLEY.
William Ford Stanley (1829–1909) began making mathematical instruments in London in 1853. In his influential 1866 volume on the construction and use of drawing instruments, he called this form of drawing pen a "lifting-nib" or "jointed" pen. It was supposed to be easier to clean than a standard drawing pen. This example was probably made in the late 19th century.
References: William Ford Stanley, Mathematical Drawing and Measuring Instruments 6th ed. (London: E. & F. N. Spon, 1888), 12; T. Potter, "Aids and Accessories," Journal of the Society of Estate Clerks of Works 8, no. 3 (1895): 33–36; David M. Riches, "W. F. Stanley," Mathematical Instruments: A Private Collection, http://www.mathsinstruments.me.uk/page43.html.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 19th century
maker
Stanley, William Ford
ID Number
1978.2110.10
accession number
1978.2110
catalog number
336736

Drawing Pen

This 5-3/8" steel and ivory drawing pen is marked on one side of the pen point: D. R. P. 40967. On the other side, it is marked: BREVETÉES (/) S. G. D. G.
Description
This 5-3/8" steel and ivory drawing pen is marked on one side of the pen point: D. R. P. 40967. On the other side, it is marked: BREVETÉES (/) S. G. D. G. These marks mean that the maker had received German and French patents on the pen after Germany established its unified patent law in 1877. Compare to 1978.2110.08 and 1978.2110.09.
The previous owner collected more than 1,200 hand tools and machine tools and displayed them at his family's building company in Baltimore, Md.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
after 1877
ID Number
1977.1101.0098
accession number
1977.1101
catalog number
1977.1101.0098

Drawing Pen

This 5-1/16" steel, German silver, and ivory drawing pen has no identifying marks.
Description
This 5-1/16" steel, German silver, and ivory drawing pen has no identifying marks. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many makers of mathematical instruments in the United States and Europe sold drawing pens with ivory handles to draftsmen and other people who made engineering and architectural drawings. For instance, Keuffel & Esser and Dietzgen advertised similar pens for $1.80. The screw allowed users to adjust the width of the point and thus the width of a line made by dipping the pen in ink and then writing on paper.
References: Catalog of Eugene Dietzgen Co., 7th ed. (Chicago, 1904), 56; Catalogue of Keuffel & Esser Co., 33rd ed. (New York, 1909), 72.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
ID Number
1978.2110.08
accession number
1978.2110
catalog number
336734

Drawing Pen

This 3-3/4" German silver and ivory drawing pen is missing the decorative bulb that would have been at the top of the handle. As with other ivory-handled drawing pens, the point may be unscrewed from the handle.
Description
This 3-3/4" German silver and ivory drawing pen is missing the decorative bulb that would have been at the top of the handle. As with other ivory-handled drawing pens, the point may be unscrewed from the handle. Pens like this were sold for engineering drawing in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Compare to 1977.0279.01, 1978.2110.07, 1978.2110.08, 1978.2110.10, 1979.0420.01, 1983.0238.01, 1990.0115.01, 1990.0115.02, 309654, 315411, 317925.04, 318491, 323412, 334622, 335300, 335335, 335353, and 335355.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
ID Number
1978.2110.09
accession number
1978.2110
catalog number
336735

Soellner Drawing Pen

This 4-3/4" steel, German silver, and metal drawing pen is marked on the tightening screw: SOELLNER (/) GERMANY. Soellner was a 20th-century German manufacturer of drawing instruments.William J.
Description
This 4-3/4" steel, German silver, and metal drawing pen is marked on the tightening screw: SOELLNER (/) GERMANY. Soellner was a 20th-century German manufacturer of drawing instruments.
William J. Ellenberger (1908–2008), who owned this pen, studied electrical and mechanical engineering at The George Washington University between 1925 and 1934. He then worked for the Potomac Electric Power Company and the National Bureau of Standards. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. He was a civilian construction management engineer for the army from 1954 to 1968, when he became a private consultant.
Reference: "The GW Engineering Hall of Fame 2006 Inductees," http://www.weas.gwu.edu/ifaf/hall_of_fame_inductees_2006.php.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
maker
Soellner
ID Number
1981.0933.24
accession number
1981.0933
catalog number
1981.0933.24

Curve Pen

This 4-7/8" pen for making engineering, surveying, and railroad drawings consists of a steel curved tip with a tightening screw attached to a thin rod that runs through a ridged German silver cylinder to be secured by a German silver screw top.
Description
This 4-7/8" pen for making engineering, surveying, and railroad drawings consists of a steel curved tip with a tightening screw attached to a thin rod that runs through a ridged German silver cylinder to be secured by a German silver screw top. Tightening or loosening the top allowed the user to create straight or curved lines. (The blades of the pen point swiveled when the top was loosened.) Numerous sellers of drawing instruments offered curve pens in the first half of the 20th century; they usually charged about $1.50.
The donor, Sebastian J. Tralongo (1928–2007), served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and then worked for the Vitro Corporation in Rockville, Md., for 35 years. He patented a device for signaling from deeply submerged submarines. The object was received with several other drawing instruments in a wooden box, 1984.1071.13.
References: "Tralongo, Sebastian James 'Subby'," Hartford Courant, May 26, 2007; Sebastian J. Tralongo, "Submarine Signal Device" (U.S. Patent 2,989,024 issued June 20, 1961); "Vitro Corp. – Company Profile," http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/history2/25/Vitro-Corp.html.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
early 20th century
ID Number
1984.1071.09
accession number
1984.1071
catalog number
1984.1071.09

Cornelius Knudsen Drawing Pen

This 6" aluminum, German silver, and steel drawing pen is marked: CORN.KNUDSEN. Trademarks of two superimposed dividers are on either side of the mark.
Description
This 6" aluminum, German silver, and steel drawing pen is marked: CORN.KNUDSEN. Trademarks of two superimposed dividers are on either side of the mark. In 1838 Cornelius Knudsen founded a firm in Copenhagen, Denmark, that made optical, navigational, and surveying instruments, planimeters, and equipment for telegraphy into the 1930s. This object was received and is stored with a set of drawing instruments, 1985.0909.01. It was owned by Harald Trap Friis (1893–1976), a Danish emigrant who became a prominent radio engineer for Bell Labs.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1920-1958
maker
Knudsen, Cornelius
ID Number
1985.0909.02
accession number
1985.0909
catalog number
1985.0909.02

Pelikan Graphos Pen with Nibs

This 4-5/16" black plastic pen has a metal pocket clip and is marked in script: Pelikan Graphos GERMANY. The end is unscrewed from one side, revealing a metal holder for a pen nib, and screwed to the other side. The tip of the holder is marked: 3.
Description
This 4-5/16" black plastic pen has a metal pocket clip and is marked in script: Pelikan Graphos GERMANY. The end is unscrewed from one side, revealing a metal holder for a pen nib, and screwed to the other side. The tip of the holder is marked: 3. Nineteen different nibs may be attached to the pen. They each are marked: MADE IN GERMANY. They are also marked: Pelikan (/) GRAPHOS (/) GÜNT . . . NER. They are also marked: IMPORTE D'ALLEMAGNE. Each nib is marked with its size; brass inlays indicate the width for seven of the nibs (those for drawing fine lines).
The set is in a wooden bar-lock case covered in black leather and lined with dark blue velvet. The top of the case is marked: Pelikan (/) Graphos. The bottom of the case is marked: MADE IN GERMANY (/) IMPORTE D'ALLEMAGNE.
Carl Hornemann opened a color and ink factory in Hanover, Germany, in 1838. The company began using a pelican as its trademark in 1863 and first offered a fountain pen in 1929. The Graphos was manufactured in the form illustrated by this object between 1934 and 1957. This set was probably made in the early part of this time frame. The nibs were designed for technical drawing and lettering. Rotring took over the Graphos brand in 1978, but Pelikan remains in operation as of 2013.
References: Pelikan, "History," http://www.pelikan.com/pulse/Pulsar/en_US.Pelikan.timelineInitView.136400./history; Annina and Andreas Schenk, "Pelikan Graphos," http://www.kalligraphie.com/909-0-Pelikan-Graphos.html.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1934-1957
maker
Pelikan
ID Number
1989.0305.02
accession number
1989.0305
catalog number
1989.0305.02

6 Pen Nibs and Case for Pencil Leads

This object consists of one 1-11/16" cylindrical metal case for pencil leads and six nibs for dip pens. The first nib is marked: 968 (/) R. ESTERBROOK & Co. (/) RADIO PEN (/) MADE IN U.S.A. The second nib is marked: 988 (/) R. ESTERBROOK & Co (/) RADIO PEN (/) MADE IN U.S.A.
Description
This object consists of one 1-11/16" cylindrical metal case for pencil leads and six nibs for dip pens. The first nib is marked: 968 (/) R. ESTERBROOK & Co. (/) RADIO PEN (/) MADE IN U.S.A. The second nib is marked: 988 (/) R. ESTERBROOK & Co (/) RADIO PEN (/) MADE IN U.S.A. The third and fourth nibs are marked: B (/) BEATS ALL (/) STUB. The fifth nib is marked: C (/) BEATS ALL (/) BANK. The sixth nib is marked: V (/) BEATS ALL (/) SCHOOL.
Richard Esterbrook moved from England to the Americas in the 1850s to manufacture steel pens, opening a factory in Camden, N.J., around 1860. The company expanded into fountain pens around 1920. The Radio line of pen nibs, steel points for dip pens, was introduced around that time, but these nibs were probably made later. Venus Pen and Pencil, formerly the American Lead Pencil Co., purchased Esterbrook in 1967. It is unclear which pen manufacturer made the "Beats All" brands, but these examples probably date to the 1930s.
William J. Ellenberger (1908–2008), who owned these items, studied electrical and mechanical engineering at The George Washington University between 1925 and 1934. He then worked for the Potomac Electric Power Company and the National Bureau of Standards. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. He was a civilian construction management engineer for the army from 1954 to 1968, when he became a private consultant.
References: advertisement for Esterbrook Pens, The American Stationer and Office Outfitter 90, no. 8(March 4, 1922): 35; "The GW Engineering Hall of Fame 2006 Inductees," http://www.weas.gwu.edu/ifaf/hall_of_fame_inductees_2006.php.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1940
maker
Esterbrook Pen Company
ID Number
1981.0933.25
accession number
1981.0933
catalog number
1981.0933.25

Drawing Pen

This 5-3/8" steel, German silver, and black plastic drawing pen is marked on its adjusting screw: 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |8.The donor, Sebastian J. Tralongo (1928–2007), served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and then worked for the Vitro Corporation in Rockville, Md., for 35 years.
Description
This 5-3/8" steel, German silver, and black plastic drawing pen is marked on its adjusting screw: 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |8.
The donor, Sebastian J. Tralongo (1928–2007), served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and then worked for the Vitro Corporation in Rockville, Md., for 35 years. He patented a device for signaling from deeply submerged submarines. This pen was received with several other drawing instruments in a wooden box, 1984.1071.13.
References: "Tralongo, Sebastian James 'Subby'," Hartford Courant, May 26, 2007; Sebastian J. Tralongo, "Submarine Signal Device" (U.S. Patent 2,989,024 issued June 20, 1961); "Vitro Corp. – Company Profile," http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/history2/25/Vitro-Corp.html.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
mid 20th century
ID Number
1984.1071.07
accession number
1984.1071
catalog number
1984.1071.07

Drawing Pen

This 5-1/4" steel and wood drawing pen is painted black on its handle. The object was received with several other drawing instruments in a wooden box, 1984.1071.13. The donor, Sebastian J. Tralongo (1928–2007), served in the U.S.
Description
This 5-1/4" steel and wood drawing pen is painted black on its handle. The object was received with several other drawing instruments in a wooden box, 1984.1071.13. The donor, Sebastian J. Tralongo (1928–2007), served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and then worked for the Vitro Corporation in Rockville, Md., for 35 years. He patented a device for signaling from deeply submerged submarines.
References: "Tralongo, Sebastian James 'Subby'," Hartford Courant, May 26, 2007; Sebastian J. Tralongo, "Submarine Signal Device" (U.S. Patent 2,989,024 issued June 20, 1961); "Vitro Corp. – Company Profile," http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/history2/25/Vitro-Corp.html.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
mid 20th century
ID Number
1984.1071.08
accession number
1984.1071
catalog number
1984.1071.08

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.