Japanese Dorics

To my friend Croma, after a nice conversation in Madrid.

Copies are part of any industry, and therefore part of the pen industry. What is not tradition is plagiarism, some say...

On these pages we have already seen some examples of Japanese pens that were inspired –what an euphemism!- on models of success (see, for instance, ::1::, ::2::, and ::3::). So, this is nothing new, but there are always more models to describe, and some of them are very interesting.

Today I will call the attention to two different makers caught in the act of copying the same model—the Wahl Eversharp Doric (1931-1940).

The first example is a Sailor.

This is a plunger filler made of semitransparent celluloid. Its general shape is indeed close to that of the Doric. The clip, to name a detail, is remarkably similar.

Gold nib: "14 CRT GOLD / Sailor / REGISTERED / PATENT OFFICE / -1-".
On the clip, "SAILOR".

And engraved on the body, "SAILOR FOUNTAIN PEN".

Sailor manufactured this pen in 1937.

These are the dimensions:
Length closed: 123 mm
Length open: 110 mm
Length posted: 150 mm
Diameter: 11 mm
Weight: around 13.5 g (broken filling mechanism)

The second pen belongs to a very secondary maker called Order, about which nothing can I say.

An Order pen, signed on the cap and on the nib. On the cap, the inscription reads '"ORDER" / FOUNTAIN PEN'.

On this case, the pen is a lever filler, and also implements a golden nib. These are the dimensions:
Length closed: 120 mm
Length open: 112 mm
Length posted: 155 mm
Diameter: 13 mm
Weight: 16.3 g (dry)

On the nib: "ORDER / 14 KT / 5 / GOLD PEN".

These two pens show how copying was, and still is, a universal shortcut. And that Japan was paying close attention to what was happening beyond her borders.


My thanks to Mr. Sugimoto and Mr. Shobutsuen.

Yamada buffalo horn and silver – Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Brown

Bruno Taut
Nakano, December 13th 2019
etiquetas: Wahl Eversharp, Sailor, Order