Pens of Note

Leonardo Pen created the Cinquantesimo Federico to recognize the fifty year anniversary of the Matrone family business and creativity with with writing instruments. I have seen photos of the pen in the internet, but when I saw the actual pen when I was in the Novelli Pen Store in Rome, this was moved into the - this will be part of my collection group. It is a beautiful, well styled pen. Writing with it has only enhanced my feelings towards the pen.

Cinquantesimo 50th Federico, strumento da scrittura

If you have to do something special for a 50th anniversary, Leonardo Pen did. They used a beautiful celluloid, created almost twenty years ago by Mazzucchelli 1849. This pen is "lavorato da barra piena" - worked from a solid bar of celluloid. The celluloid known as Federico, has a black base with amber accents and small bits of blue inserts. Celluloid creates a relatively light pen. The pen is well balanced and my writing is more an experience of the flight of my hand as the 14 kt gold La Fenice nib effortlessly slides across the paper. The statement on the box: centopercento Italiano - is so true. This is an Italian pen that will certain hold classic status.

Writing with the Cinquantesino Federico

Turning to smooth piston twist know I knew this is going to be a great pen. The turning process itself seem so well tuned. I filled my pen with ink, wiped the nib and the nib section with a cloth and I was ready. My pen is easily described as "wet". The ink gracefully flows onto the paper and the size six, 14 kt gold Stub 1.1 nib lays a beautiful line of ink on the paper.

I have many 1.1 Stubs, and they all write a bit differently. This ranks high of the list of having just the right amount of broad and thin writing variation. My down strokes are bold, and the horizonal lines thinner. Beautiful.

The pen fits very well in my hand. It is a bit shorter than the Momento Zero 2 (148 mm vs 151 mm) and the grip diameter juset a bit smaller (MZ2 = 12.3, Federico 11.6). These are minor differences but they do give the pen a slightly different feel.

The nib clip is similar to the Leonardo line, and it has a sturdy feel attached to the cap.

When the pen is closed, there is a band with an upper and lower ring on the cap. The band finish is either yellow gold, rose gold, ruthenium or white ruthenium. My is rose gold which I think has a very soft look on the bed. The celluloid is the star and I think they were wise to keep decorative trim to a minimum and distract from the celluloid. There is an easy to take organic pattern engraved on the band.

I use the pen posted and sometimes not, both modes are comfortable.

The pen is fitted with Leonard's in-house designed piston filling mechanism. The piston holds a generous 1.5 ml of ink.

In summary, I am so glad I have this pen in my collection. The celluloid for this pen is no longer produced. It was created in the early 2000s so I am writing with a pen made today with vintage celloid. Bravo Leonardo.