D. Leonardt & Co.
 | |
| Formerly | D. Leonardt & Co. |
|---|---|
| Company type | Private |
| Industry | Metallurgy |
| Founded | 1856 in Birmingham, England[1] |
| Founder | Diedrich Leonardt [1] |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products |
|
| Website | leonardt.com |
Leonardt Ltd. (formerly D. Leonardt & Co.) is an English manufacturing company that specializes in finishing of metal components,[2] manufacturing products such as corners for stationery such as leathergoods, photograph albums, menu covers, pattern and carpet books, binders and portfolios.
The company also produced writing implements that included dip and fountain nibs, ballpoint pens, pen holders and mechanical pencils,[3] which set Leonardt as one of the oldest manufacturers of dip pens, having produced them since its establishment in 1856.[4]
History
[edit]
The company was founded in 1856 by Diedrich Leonardt to manufacture dip pens. After two large expansions led by Leonardt in 1863 and 1867, D Leonardt & Co. developed large export market in South America and Eastern Europe, and produced pens for the King of Italy. The manufactured pens were considered to be of high quality and included their famous patent ballpoint pens,[5] such as the "Automatic Wonder Pen", a new type of fountain pen introduced in 1871.[6]
Despite most manufacturers of nibs established in Birmingham having since closed their factories,[1] Leonardt & Co. is one of the few companies that have remained in the industry since its founding, although the company ceased to produce pens. The Leonardt brand is currently produced by the Manuscript Pen Company, based in Highley.[7] The only other British company that currently manufactures dip pens is William Mitchell (Calligraphy) through its brands Joseph Gillott's and William Mitchell.[8]
Pen models
[edit]Some of the dip pen models manufactured by Leonardt were:[9][3]
| Image | Model |
|---|---|
 |
6H - Extra fine drawing nib, nickel |
 |
30 ("Point"), nickel |
 |
33 ("Copying"), nickel |
 |
40 ("Pumpking"), fine, blue finish |
 |
41 ("Crown"), fine point, with collar body |
 |
63.5 ("School"), nickel |
 |
70 ("Ornamental") - Oblique with top reservoir, bronze |
 |
111 - Nickel and gilding |
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251 ("Scroll") - for decorative borders, gilding |
 |
256 ("Drawing") - gilt, nickel, and bronze |
 |
260/265 ("Poster") - Flat-shape pen, brass and gilding |
_DSC_9152.jpg) |
300 ("Ball point"), nickel |
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400 ("Ornamental"), polished |
_DSC_9916.jpg) |
518 ("Lithographic"), bright |
_DSC_9920.jpg) |
700 - Extra fine drawing nib, nickel |
_(2).jpg) |
800/801 ("Mapping") - Crowquill type, extrafine, bronze |
 |
"Index" - Decorative, bronze |
 |
"Principal" - Extrafine, bronze |
 |
"Shakespeare" - Decorative, bronze, nickel and gilding |
| Image | Model |
|---|---|
 |
516 ("Eureka") - Spherical point |
 |
526 - Spherical point |
| 2300 ("Round") - Traditional calligraphy, nickel |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c More about the Pen Trade in Birmingham (Archive), 1 July 2010
- ^ Sub-contract metal finishing on Leonardt Ltd. website, 11 April 2017
- ^ a b Product page on Leonardt website (archived), 14 March 2016
- ^ "The company" Archived 10 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine on Leonardt website
- ^ The manufacturers on The Pen Room website (Archive), 18 February 2012
- ^ "Penning an Empire: A Brief History of D. Leonardt & Co". Lungsal. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
- ^ Our History Manuscript Pen Company, 24 April 2023
- ^ William Mitchell Calligraphy Home, 24 April 2023
- ^ D. Leonardt & Co. nibs online catalog on Hans Presto website
External links
[edit]
- Official website
- Dip pen nibs catalog (archived, 2 Mar 2007)
