If people are praised or frown upon by the company they work for and the clothes they choose to buy, then the fountain pen they carry in their shirtfront pocket too has always had a say. And if it is one with the Mont Blanc star logo it speaks for itself just as Jaguar clearly tells about the financial and social state of its driver. Few pen manufacturers can take credit for writing world history for full hundred years, and on.

At the early beginning of the last century, in 1906 three friends united to establish a company at Hamburg (a port city in Germany) that began hand crafting fountain pens. Being of German, French and Italian origin, the three adopted Mont Blanc, Europe’s highest mountain snow peak as the name for their company.
The nib of each of their pens comes with an engraving of the figures 4810 which specify the height of the Mont Blanc range in meters.

Over the years passing by they have launched onto the market new kinds of products thus diversifying the assortment with watches, lifestyle accessories, jewelry and leather collections and whatever else the product is. Mont Blanc trademark is synonymous with traditional craftsmanship, fine quality and extra perfection. Each year pens are dedicated to a Patrons of Art and Writers, say one year to Sir Henry Tate and Virginia Woolf respectively, another to Agatha Christy and Humboldt Limited Editions. A thrilling symbiosis is reflected in the writing instruments of the Patron of the Art Edition Hommage à J. Pierpont Morgan. With their creative design of 925 sterling silver and modern carbon fiber on the cap, seemingly contradictory elements combine to form a unique blend of materials. They also believe in contributing to the society and in spring of 2005 have teamed up with UNICEF organization in an attempt to tackle international illiteracy.

By the way, Mont Blanc Meisterstück 149 was chosen as a symbol of the project to demonstrate the number of editions manufactured under Meisterstück series pens. The company asked 149 famous people to write down their thoughts on poverty and illiteracy issues the world continues to face in XXI century. Besides, Montblanc showed its generosity by adding 4810 dollars (these figures are the height of the corresponding mounting peak in Europe) to each of the papers later sold on auctions.

Each centenary edition is crafted with the Mont Blanc special emblem that has been created in a diamond with 43 facets.

The Limited Edition Meisterstück Solitaire 1906 fountain pen (just 1906 pieces made to celebrate the year the company was founded in) combines a granite cap carved from a boulder hewn from the Mont Blanc Massif with a sterling silver barrel crowned by the Mont Blanc diamond and an 18-karat gold nib.

Also a special offer is the company’s Hero – the Meisterstuck 149 – the model of the first pen manufactured.
“It is common to see three generations of the same family working at our factory in Hamburg. Montblanc products become family heirlooms,” says Michelle Perry, boutique manager for Mont Blanc pens.