Fountain Pen Crime In Berkeley, Ca

[ISW_Kaputnik]

One never wants to cast suspicion on innocent people of course. It's possible, though, that even an innocent person could unintentionally tip off a potential thief that there is something worth stealing in a particular place. People gossip, and if enough of them mention that Professor _________ has a lot of fancy expensive looking pens in his office, then the wrong person might overhear it.

[Mister John]

I don't have any Namiki's, Pelikans, or Mont Blanc's. But what I do have is an overgrown collection of wonderful vintage pens, and I'd be more than willing to toss you a nice one as well. I see you like Sheaffer's, I could send you a nice Snorkel or some such if you'd like to PM me your address. I only hope that it can help to at least alleviate even the smallest bit of your pain and start you on your way to getting past this and growing a new collection. I know I'd be devastated personally, if this had happened to me. Keep your chin up, you've now got a whole forum of rabid pen lovers in your corner. I'm certain if they turn up online, someone here will be on top of it. Best of luck!

@FriedIceCream: What a nice offer. I'm truly touched at this outpouring of sympathy in the pen community. As a full-time lurker and part-time contributor, I'm not surprised about the passion we all have for this crazy obsession. But to see people pull together to help is really wonderful. I'll PM you later.

 

As for other things, I've built some auto searches on eBay, contacted local pawn shops and pen dealers. I also thought of a couple more pens that are quite distinctive for being so unusual. One is a Sheaffer Intrigue with a whale shark pattern and an italic nib. Sheaffer didn't sell these retail with that nib, you had to buy and then send to Sheaffer for refitting. I rather doubt there are more than a handful of these out there.

 

Thanks again for all the kindness!

[Mister John]

it seems one of the supposed pens has poped up on ebay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/290974408085?lpid=82

from the fpgeeks it may or may not be so its important the pen's number is still in your mind

This pen was posted before the theft and is out of Michigan. It's not mine. I don't want the good name of the seller of this pen to be unfairly labeled.

[Mister John]

As I'm busy compiling a list for insurance purposes (amazingly, they plan to apply "depreciation" to the retail price of the older pens, so I won't get much for my mid 50s Pelikans I suppose.) I'll post the list here as well. The Owl, the Whale Shark, and a Pelikan Toledo are probably the three most unusual of the lot.

[pen2paper]

creepy event, always feels terrible when a persons environment, and possessions, studied collections are violated.

added thoughts if you were thrown under the train by one known to you adds to the distress, and insult.

 

I wear 1 single ring, my grandmothers, which has a sentimental story, given to me after all of my jewelry was stolen eons ago.

It was taped on during a surgeries.

 

Besides bolstering community support, one other possibility to check. There is a fairly nationwide connected estate sales community. See if Estate sales dot net is in your area. Pens could be added in such sales, as late add ons of additional "family objects" added. No indictment of estate sale operatives, simply an extra place to check.

 

Otherwise, one option is to create new pen memories totally aside from this incident. Not exactly what you researched and carefully added, but offered in the very best of community spirit, by those who place high value upon these useful and sometimes beautiful objects.

heartless greed caused one issue, generosity of sincere hearts could remedy, and put you on the path to your next pen adventure.

 

Edited to add, though we're all delighted to share our enthusiasm, there's some necessary cautions. Some totally get what we are sharing, others, zilch. Upon asking for the key to remove a large display, two room glass sided lobby wall, ceiling to floor, the person in charge never asked who I was, didn't look up, but opened the drawer and extended the key. After completing the task, I returned the key,toting carts with the many objects, and asked if she knew who I was. She then looked at me blankly. "No, but you asked for the key". I mentioned that the single 6' bottom case installation elsewhere, has a photographed insured value of: The look I saw on her face was no longer blank, it was blanched with realization of her error. Thought I was being careful documenting, and securing. No loss, but potential for an epic fail. Huge lesson.

Edited June 4, 2014 by pen2paper

[Aurko]

As everyone else has said, I'm sorry to hear of your loss. I hope that you find your pens and that the perpetrators come to light. In the meanwhile good luck and my condolences. That must be devastating. In the meanwhile, I'll keep an eye out for pens that match the description of your pens on ebay and any other pen sites that I see.

[Blue_Moon]

As I'm busy compiling a list for insurance purposes (amazingly, they plan to apply "depreciation" to the retail price of the older pens, so I won't get much for my mid 50s Pelikans I suppose.) I'll post the list here as well. The Owl, the Whale Shark, and a Pelikan Toledo are probably the three most unusual of the lot.

 

That is amazing. I'm wondering - could you do research and document current prices for those pens and present that information to the insurance company?

[pen2paper]

 

That is amazing. I'm wondering - could you do research and document current prices for those pens and present that information to the insurance company?

you may wish to consult those involved in pen auctions for actual realized value... this documentation may counter the initial depreciated value.

yikes major s;sleepy error edit at least we're on the same page

Edited June 5, 2014 by pen2paper

[brgphilly]

You do not have to take an insurance company's offer. Many companies "low-ball" as a matter of course. There are private adjusters who can argue on your behalf. Probably adjusters that are local to you! Good luck!

[Vgimlet]

My condolences on your loss, that is terrible. Can't offer any help or ideas, everyone else has brought up all the things I was thinking.

[David_W]

amazingly, they plan to apply "depreciation" to the retail price of the older pens, so I won't get much for my mid 50s Pelikans I suppose

What legal knowledge I have is from outside your jurisdiction and, indeed, outside the United States (England and Wales - still a common law system, but with a lot of differences). Still, that knowledge leads me to suspect that if you can demonstrate that a pen should not be seen as a worn and used equivalent of a pen sold new at retail today, but a collectable item with a fair market value relating to its age and condition, you should avoid depreciation if you are prepared to stand your ground. The market value takes account of age and condition - depreciation on top would be taking account of the same factors twice.

 

You may need to research market values and may land up instructing your own experts to assist in establishing market prices in order to lead to a fair valuation. There's quite a few attorneys on FPN - maybe there's one who is a member of your State Bar who can advise on the correct approach.

 

 

Clearly, if you had a common pen that is only a few years old and is substantially similar to current production, say a three year old Mont Blanc 149, it would not be unreasonable to base the value on retail price for a new pen less depreciation. This approach seems totally unsuited to 1950s collectable pens.

 

 

I join the others in mourning your loss and wish you well as you recover the situation as best you can.

[ashbridg]

I doubt if your pens will show up on ebay or in a pawn shop. Most likely the thief will try to sell the collection intact to a dealer or collector or maybe at a pen show (he may claim to have inherited the pens from his uncle's estate). The high-end pen world is small, and your collection is distinctive enough that someone will recognize it. Just continue to get the word out. Most pen people are honest. The chances of finding your pens are actually pretty good. The pen community will do more to help you than the police can.

[wetnoodlepens]

This is extremely disturbing... All signs indicate that a fountain pen enthusiast stole the fountain pens. What is the world coming to?

[whitedot]

John, I too would like to send along an FP. Its monetary value is a great deal less than any of those mentioned. But, it is vintage and could take your mind off things for a little while. Please PM me with your mailing address if you are interested.

 

 

So much scandal at UC Berkeley recently x_x Wasn't it very recently that a worker from UC Berkeley had withdrawn thousands of dollars from private donations for her child's private school education?

 

What could your point possibly be?

Now it's a good time to check if you had failed any students recently...

Really?

Edited June 5, 2014 by whitedot

[casualmerlinconstant]

 

 

Really?

 

You never know, recently a bunch of students flipped a professor's car at my university .

Sorry for your loss Mister John, there aren't many buyers for these things. Hopefully it'll make it easier to recover them.

Edited June 5, 2014 by superglueshoe

[Gloucesterman]

What an amazing group of people here. The offers of donations and financial support truly demonstrate - imo- the nature of the members of this forum.

 

In addition to the Craigslist, eBay and pawnshops, check out other stores that del with antiques and vintage items. Also think of etsy, Fountain pen Board and the European auction organizations. You may even want to do online searches for the specific pens to determine if/where they might be sold.

 

Finally, a seconding of the suggestion to challenge any attempt to minimize the insurance low-ball offer. BUT, keep in mind that you have to be able to document the specific pens and to show pictures to clearly demonstrate the condition of the pens in your possession. Also, check with the University as well as your insurance company to find out about, at least their partial liability in the loss.

 

It's sad when something like this happens. Please accept my condolences for your loss.

 

Does anyone know of any sources of insurance for fountain pens? When I asked my agent about covering my smaller and more limited "collection", their comments were definitely discouraging in terms of cost, deductible and the complicated process for clearing establishing the possible value of my pens.

[sotto2]

Sorry if this has already been discussed. Presumably you've put out the word to the staff in your building regarding the incident. Have you received any info back?

[elysee]

I am saddened to hear of the theft of your pens, Mister John. Since the thief/thieves seemed to know where your pens were hidden within your office, (s)he/they have been watching and/or have had access to your office.

 

This is disturbing since one's office is one's oasis/home while at work.

 

I hope that you will be able to get your pens back.

[elysee]

I doubt if your pens will show up on ebay or in a pawn shop. Most likely the thief will try to sell the collection intact to a dealer or collector or maybe at a pen show (he may claim to have inherited the pens from his uncle's estate). The high-end pen world is small, and your collection is distinctive enough that someone will recognize it. Just continue to get the word out. Most pen people are honest. The chances of finding your pens are actually pretty good. The pen community will do more to help you than the police can.

Notifying pen dealers, pen collectors, and those who sell/buy at pens shows is a great idea!

[Mister John]

Thanks to all of you for keeping an eye out for my collection. So far no luck but, as was said, the FP community is not very big and the collection is rather distinctive, so maybe I'll be lucky if I'm patient. I want to address (and dispel) some suggestions as to perpetrators.

 

1. Students: I teach only MBA students and a handful (6) of PhDs. Moreover, I'm on sabbatical this year, so have not interacted with any students really. Thus, I think this is unlikely.

 

2. Depreciation: After further conferring with the insurance company, they do indeed apply "depreciation" to old pens; however, my policy gives me replacement value of the item, so all I need do is buy something similar back from the marketplace and they top-up to replacement value.

 

I received a lovely note from Coffeetoofull (along with a lovely TWSBI). Hr encouraged me to put this behind me and not let it color my view of people. Good advice I think. My initial reaction was to abandon this passion of mine as too heartbreaking. I think I'm past this and will start a new collection. Lightning cannot strike the same person twice, can it?