Dear Kitty,

Thursday, 11th November, 1943.

I have a good title for this chapter:

"ODE TO MY FOUNTAIN-PEN IN MEMORIAM".

My fountain-pen has always been one of my most priceless possessions; I value it highly, especially for it's thick* nib, for I can only really write neatly with a thick nib. My fountain-pen has had a very long and interesting pen-life, which I will briefly tell you about.

When I was nine, my fountain-pen arrived in a packet (wrapped in cotton-wool) as "sample without value" all the way from Aachen, where my grandmother, the kind donor, used to live. I was in bed with 'flu, while February winds howled round the house. The glorious fountain-pen had a red leather case and was at once shown round to all my friends. I, Anne Frank, the proud owner of a fountain-pen!** When I was ten I was allowed to take the pen to school and the mistress went so far as to permit me to write with it.

When I was eleven, however, my treasure had to be put away again, because the mistress in the sixth form only allowed us to use school pens and ink-pots.

When I was twelve and went to the Jewish Lyceum, my fountain-pen received a new case in honour of the great occasion; it could take a pencil as well, and as it closed with a zipp looked much more impressive.

At thirteen the fountain-pen came with us to the "Secret Annexe" where it has raced through countless diaries and compositions for me.

Now I am fourteen, we have spent our last year together.

It was on a Friday afternoon after five o'clock. I had come out of my room and wanted to go and sit at the table to write, when I was roughly pushed to one side and had to make room for Margot and Daddy who wanted to practice their "Latin". The fountain-pen remained on the table, unused while, with a sigh, it's owner contented herself with a tiny corner of the table and started rubbing beans.

"Bean rubbing" is making mouldy beans decent again. I swept the floor at a quarter to six and threw the dirt, together with the bad beans, into a newspaper and into the stove. A terrific flame leapt out and I thought it was grand that the fire should burn up so well when it was practically out. All was quiet again, the "Latinites" had finished, and I went and sat at the table to clear up my writing things, but look as I might, my fountain-pen was nowhere to be seen. I looked again, Margot looked, but there was not a trace of the thing; "Perhaps it fell into the stove together with the beans," Margot suggested. "Oh, no, of course not!" I answered. When my fountain-pen didn't turn up that evening, however, we all took it that it had been burnt, all the more as celluloid is terribly inflammable.

And so it was, our unhappy fears were confirmed; when Daddy did the stove the following morning the clip used for fastening was found amongst the ashes. Not a trace of the gold nib was found. "Must have melted and stuck to some stone or other," Daddy thought.

I have one consolation, although a slender one: my fountain-pen has been cremated, Just what I want later!

Yours,

Anne.

I thought this would be a nice entry for all you fellows. It's from the Diary of Anne Frank.

* - I assume that the pen probably had a broad nib.

** - This is the entry where my signature-quote comes from

And now - Does anybody know what fountain pen Anne might possibly have owned? I read somewhere that it might've been a Montblanc...Hmm. Since the pen doesn't exist anymore, I suppose this might be a hard question to answer...but I thought this might make for some interesting reading-material, if nothing more.

Nice post.

Possibly a MD or maybe a Danish Parker. Just too many choices, unless someone has a particular insight.

As far as I know Anna Frank used a Mont Blanc pen.

Thanks for this amazing post. It does highlight the value that a fountain pen really has. I don't mean the value in the market place, but the value that a fountain pen has as a tool and also as a companion in your creative or professional endeavours. Add to that it's use for communication with loved ones.

It makes me want to stick with just one fountain pen regardless of how much I paid for it. Because the most valuable fountain pen in my collection isn't some expensive bling bling, it's a 30 dollar sheaffer snorkel. However, I still can't resist the expensive bling bling.

I remember reading that she had a Mont Blanc FP.

George

Beautiful. I've always been fascinated by Anne Frank and her life. Tragic and captivating at the same time. I forgot the relationship with her fountain pen.

She speaks of the fountain pen, as a close friend. Funny, sometimes I feel the same way. Ms. Frank may you rest in peace.

That's sort of tragic, but the whole of the story is. I have one pen in my small collection that I know I could never part with or lose.

I googled and did find a picture in a dutch article, but I think it's too modern. I'll have a look on the Anne Frank museum site, perhaps they actually have the pen, or a pen like it, overthere.

Best regards,

Jarno.

Edit:
I have attached the picture I found.

Edit again:
They can't have the actual pen, because it acidentally fell in the fireplace.

Yeah as noted in the diary-entry, the original fountain pen was destroyed by fire.

Montblanc is often mentioned as the brand of her fountain pen. But are there any indications about the brand name ?

Ruud

Her pen is mentioned as a Montblanc in an article SOMEWHERE - But for the life of me, I can't remember where. I think it might be Penspotters.

Sorry I should have said something when you first put that signature under your post but I wasn't sure if maybe the English translator got it wrong.

Could you please change your quote to correct her grammar? If you translate "Me, the proud owner of a fountain pen" back to Dutch it makes her sound really stupid. I'm sorry I don't know how else put it. "Me" instead of "I" is an error that is hardly ever made in Dutch. Could you please change it to "I, the proud owner..." like in the quote of the text.

I'm sorry if I don't sound nice. Errors in posts don't bother me but in signature they do because it gets repeated over and over again.

Thanks for the interesting post though.

Yes mother...

Sorry

Thanks!

There, done! Now, back to Miss Frank and her fountain pen...

Her writing looks like this. Looks indeed a tad broader than medium. The question remains what FP this has been. A German brand is likely, as it was shipped to Anne from Germany. And sources speak of Montblanc. However, I have not seen or heard any indications for that assumption.

Ruud

Is this written with her fountain pen though? The ink seems to get thicker and thinner like with a dip pen. I'm not sure...

I can't tell. What it does tell me is that the size of the letters compared to the line thickness seems to me as belonging to a person used to write with a broader nib...

Here is a view on one of Anne's diaries. I believe there were three of them.
Ruud

I think it'd be interesting if MB issued a Writer's Series pen for Anne Frank. (I thought I posted this comment, but I don't see it.)

I was thinking the same thing! What a great tribute to someone who loved her fountain pen so much and gave us such invaluable reading material.

As a teen when I first read The Diary of Anne Frank, I often wondered what she would have thought if she knew that her humble diaries would be read by millions and that she would become one of the most famous names from the WW II era.

The original diary was a red & white checkered autograph book, when she filled that out, she started filling out other books. It's possible she could've had as many as five, because she actually started editing them for publication at one point...

Dear Kitty,

Wednesday, 29th March, 1944,

Bolkstein, a Minister, was speaking on the Dutch programme from London, and he said that they ought to make a collection of diaries and letters after the war. Of course, they all made a rush for my diary immediately. Just imagine how interesting it would be if I were to publish a romance of the Secret Annexe. The title alone would be enough to make people think it was a detective story...

What a sad irony that Anne Frank viewed her lost pen as "cremated."

Another sad victim of the holocaust. Both Anne and the pen lost in the fires of madness.

Forever-Damned Nazis.

Andy

Indeed, and a sobering and disturbing reminder of what humans are capable of.

Let see... Anne was born in 1929, June 12, and received the pen when she was already nine (made in June 1938) and in February, that is she had the pen in February 1939. The grandmother might not have gifter a nine years old kid with her own pen, so we can assume it was new. So, how many fountain pens are out there, made in 1938 or earlier, with a "thick" "gold" nib and celluloid body? Of course, we shall restrict the range to those made in Europe, and possibly in the neighbourings of Aachen, Germany. The following industries were certainly up and running at that time, and their products could well be sold in Germany, although I think that the politics might have favoured German products only. If we restrict to Germany only...

1761 Graf von Faber-Castell (EU, DE)
1832 Pelikan (EU, DE)
1883 Kaweko (EU, DE)
1906 MontBlanc (EU, DE)
1919 Bossert & Erhard (EU, DE)
1928 Rotring (EU, DE)
1930 Lamy (EU, DE)

Rotring did not use regular nibs; so we exclude it. Bossert & Erhard might have been inappropriate for a kid's present, so we exclude it too. Lamy used plastic instead of celluloid, so I would exclude it too.

This is an image of a Kaweko and a Pelikan:
http://image.blog.livedoor.jp/pelikan_1931.../3/e34db93b.jpg

A Pelikan 1938, with the famous zip (search for 1938 in the page):
http://www.pentrace.net/penbase/Data_Retur...icle.asp?id=368

To me, Anne's pen might have been a Pelikan 100 with the zipped pouch. At that time, Pelikan had its nibs manufactured by MontBlanc.

Luca

Speaking of Anne Frank, she's in the news today:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080226/people...ch_annefrank_dc

It's a Mont Blanc according to Rick Conner at Penspotters here:

http://www.rickconner.net/penspotters/montblanc.html

I think there is a kind of universal sensitivity among people who write journals and use fountain pens.

Sorry, but what a morbid discussion : (( You are chatting about Anne Frank's fountain pen and suggesting that MB should make a writers series of it?.. I expect that many people would find it problematic if MB did this. Commercialisation and trivialisation of the Holocaust and all that. A bit like finding out what underwear she wore and then making an Anne Frank lingerie line.

: (((
QM2

Name a more famous Dutch writer of the 20th century.

One could also say that printing her thoughts for publisher's profit is also commercialization of the holocaust.

Her work is important, which was my point.

Some of the special editions have been used to raise money for charity. I don't think that would be out of line in this case.

quote
Sorry, but what a morbid discussion : (( You are chatting about Anne Frank's fountain pen and suggesting that MB should make a writers series of it?.. I expect that many people would find it problematic if MB did this. Commercialisation and trivialisation of the Holocaust and all that. A bit like finding out what underwear she wore and then making an Anne Frank lingerie line.

: (((
QM2
unquote

Can't agree with that. There is no reason not to creat a tribute to Anne Frank by way of a memorial pen whatsoever. I think it could be a fitting tribute, especially if the profits were donated to the Holocaust Museum or Yad VaShem or something similar.

Anyone who knows anybody at MB should suggest this to them.

:-)))

O yes and too many more old german (?) brands -do not know the dates - :

Arengo Astoria Bergmark Bobino Bollwerk Brause Diplomat Domino Ebeco Ero Fend Geha Goldring Greif Hamburger Hafen Hansa
Haro Heintze Blanckertz Herma Inselsberg Klio Komma Kondor Kreuzer Krupp Luxor Markant Melbi Mercedes Merlin Meteor Minimax
Möve Nios Optima Osmia Papier Spatz Präsident Princess Rakete Reform Rifka Rio Senat Senator Singwitz Soennecken Staedler
Standard Stella Tiger Tropen

The list whith possibilities is just too long. I think that if I was to forward a gift to a nine year old grandchild, I would not give a very expensive FP. Therefore, I think the pen was not a top of the line pen but an inexpensive one. Although, it must have had a gold clip and a gold nib. That's what is known about it....

Ruud

I honestly see nothing wrong with Montblanc (or any other pen company) making an Anne Frank commemorative/special edition fountain pen. In fact, I think it would be a very nice gesture.

Don't rule out the Faber-Castell(actually,quite possibly an Osmia since Osmia was around at the time).I have a red Osmia
case,though somewhat worn,from the 1930s...


John

Re: Rood

Yes, the dates are important, as well as the materials and the zipped red pouch. I worked out from what was available to me, and the Pelikan 100N seems the perfect match. If you have additional data, proper data, not just names, then contribute with it.

Luca




I have mixed feelings about his data, as I spotted errors in his Pelikan posts.

Luca

Dates are important, of course. The pen brands I mentioned are in majority vintage German brands. Many of them are pre war for sure. I do not intend to look up if these brands existed in 1938 and there is no need to either. What I mean to say is that there are far too many possibilities to get a clue from. I think the assumption of a Pelikan 100 is as good as the assumption of a Montblanc or any other pen brand. There are no indications whatsoever.

I did find a translated version of what Anne wrote in her diary. It goes like this :



THURSDAY, 11 NOVEMBER 1943

Dearest Kitty,

I have a good title for this chapter:

Ode to My Fountain Pen In Memoriam

My fountain pen was always one of my most prized possessions; I valued it highly, especially because it had a thick nib, and I can only write neatly with thick nibs. It has led a long and interesting fountain-pen life, which I will summarize below.
When I was nine, my fountain pen (packed in cotton wool) arrived as a 'sample of no commercial value' all the way from Aachen, where my grandmother (the kindly donor) used to live. I lay in bed with flu, while the February winds howled around our flat. This splendid fountain pen came in a red leather case, and I showed it to my girlfriends the first chance I got. Me, Anne Frank, the proud owner of a fountain pen.
When I was ten, I was allowed to take the pen to school, and to my surprise, the teacher even let me write with it. When I was eleven, however, my treasure had to be tucked away again, because my sixth-form teacher allowed us to use only school pens and ink-pots. When I was twelve, I started at the Jewish Lyceum and my fountain pen was given a new case in honour of the occasion. Not only did it have room for a pencil, it also had a zip, which was much more impressive. When I was thirteen, the fountain pen went with me to the Annexe, and together we've raced through countless diaries and compositions. I'd turned fourteen and my fountain pen was enjoying the last year of its life with me when . . .
It was just after five on Friday afternoon. I came out of my room and was about to sit down at the table to write when I was roughly pushed to one side to make room for Margot and Father, who wanted to practise their Latin. The fountain pen remained unused on the table, while its owner, sighing, was forced to make do with a very tiny corner of the table, where she began rubbing beans. That's how we remove mould from the beans and restore them to their original state. At a quarter to six I swept the floor, dumped the dirt into a newspaper, along with the rotten beans, and tossed it into the stove. A giant flame shot up, and I thought it was wonderful that the stove, which had been gasping its last breath, had made such a miraculous recovery.
All was quiet again. The Latin students had left, and I sat down at the table to pick up where I'd left off. But no matter where I looked, my fountain pen was nowhere in sight. I took another look. Margot looked, Mother looked, Father looked, Dussel looked. But it had vanished.
'Maybe it fell in the stove, along with the beans!' Margot suggested.
'No, it couldn't have!' I replied.
But that evening, when my fountain pen still hadn't turned up, we all assumed it had been burned, especially because celluloid is highly inflammable. Our darkest fears were con­firmed the next day when Father went to empty the stove and discovered the clip, used to fasten it to a pocket, among the ashes. Not a trace of the gold nib was left. 'It must have melted into stone,' Father conjectured.
I'm left with one consolation, small though it may be: my fountain pen was cremated, just as I would like to be some day.

Yours, Anne


What it tells me about the pen is that it did have a metal clip, the pen body was celluloid (or something like that), a golden broad nib. It came to her in a SINGLE red leather pouch WITHOUT a zipper. That's beause - at the age of 12 - she received the second pouch. The second one had room for a pencil and had a zipper.

RUUD

Rood, I do not know how many zipped red pouches were available at the time, and if Anne's was original by the same brand of the pen, or hand made. If original, as we would say nowadays, the data I have points me to Pelikan. My guess is as good as that made by others on MontBlanc. We are playing, Rood, and it is fun. I play with numbers, so words are not much fun for me, that's why I keep asking for numbers and references (here and elsewhere). Between Pelikan and MontBlanc, however, given that Pelikan had its nibs made by MontBlanc at that time, MB would still be correct with its claim. Of course I am monkey curious about MB's own evidence. What is that MB knows to support the claim that Anne's pen was one of their own? Open question.

I don't know why we are here, but I'm pretty sure that it is not in order to enjoy ourselves.

Why do you think so? Yes, it is a terrible piece of history never to be repeated, but at the same time we are solving some kind of mystery and we can enjoy it. I even think we should enjoy it so the story wouldn't be forgotten. (I hope you understand what I meant)

I'm finding Rood and Luca's analysis very interesting.

Obviously, since she didn't say, it's impossible to know what the brand was; we can only guess.

I wrote to the Anne Frank museum, operator of the Anne Frank Haus (where she hid out) in Amsterdam to see if they know the answer. Since Anne Frank's father Otto Frank played a major part of publishing her diary and establishing the museum, this bit of history might actually be available!
I will post the reply from them once I hear back.

katia

And...the official answer is in!


------------------
Dear Katia,

We do not know what kind of fountain pen Anne used. In her Diary she
mentions that it was a golden fountain pen, but that is all we know.

With kind regards,
Anne Frank House

Barbara Ennik
Communications Department
-------------------

That is the precise answer one could expect to receive. Thanks for taking the effort, Katia ! I asked the same question even a couple of days earlier, but no reply received yet. Perhaps because I wrote in Dutch language....

I have given it another thought and would like to share it with you all. Now Anne mentions in her diary the loss of her pen the details that the golden nib according to her father perhaps was turned into stone as not a trace was found. The golden clip was retrieved the other day from the stove. My assumption is that the pen likely did not have golden caprings. If it would have had impressive cap rings, Anne just might have mentioned it. No or small pen rings would more or less be correct for the time period. War time production German pens are often without gold caprings and just have the grooves instead. I know it is a long shot, but I would put my money on a black celluloid pen, German brand, golden clip, broad golden nib and no significant cap bands, or just grooves. The red pen case that came with the pen had no zipper and could only take the pen, it was a single pen case. She explicitly mentions the zipper in relation to the two slot, second pen case.
Anne's grandmother, Rosa Stern Hollander, was not extremely rich, but not without money either. I therfore assume it was not a low end, school type of pen that she bought for Anne. So a 1938 middle class German brand FP is what I would call a best guess.

Now what of we start a little investigation about which German pen brand in 1938 had a mid class (black) celluloid pen on the market, fitted with a golden clip, a broad golden nib, no or small cap rings as well as a singe slot red pen case without a zipper..... assuming the case was the same brand as the pen.

Any thoughts or suggestions ??
Ruud

Very interesting, Ruud, I'll be curious to know what key fits the lock!

Perhaps a Soennecken of some sort? Maybe a 116? Those had pretty small trim rings, if memory serves, and they DID have good-sized nibs.

How about Kaweco pens? They were founded in Heidelberg in the 1890's.

I recently purchased a book titled "Inside Anne Frank's House - An Illustrated Journey through Anne's' World." The introduction is by Hans Westra, Executive Director, the Anne Frank House. It's a very large book and contains 279 black and white and 159 colour photographs. Many of the pictures are close ups of her writings. It appears to me she must have had two pens - a medium and a fine.

Seems correct to me. She also used pencil and different inks (blue-grey and thin red I believe). The pen we are trying to indetify is the fountain pen that she got from her grandmother in Aachen, Germany in 1938 and was burned in the stove by accident. About this pen she wrote the "Ode aan mijn vulpen" on November 11, 1943.

Back to the indenification. Large brands in these days were Montblanc, Pelikan, Osmia, Kaweco. The pen came to her in a single slot red leather pencase. That case did not have a zipper. Let's try to zoom in on the pencase. If the brand of the pen case was the same brand as the pen itself, we are looking for a pen-pencase combination that was available in 1938 and rather common. Who has any knowledge about 1938 German red leather single slot pencases without a zipper that was sold under the name of a pen manufacturer? Anyone ?

My small search on the web did not show any Osmia pencases. Peilkan, Montblanc and Kaweco did..

Ruud

the case may not have come with the pen - one must assume that pen cases were a fairly common commodity, as they still are today. it's pretty basic leather work to make a little pen case with a snap closure.