The 'Sir Francis Drake' Pen, by Conway Stewart

The Sir Francis Drake pen has a lush vermeil covering, enhanced by detailed engraving. Vermeil is a combination of sterling silver, gold, and other precious metals, popular in France in the 1700s. It used to be applied by a process called 'fire-gilding' which involved mercury and ultimately turned workers blind. Today, Conway Stewart uses electrolysis to apply vermeil. One of the pleasures of using this pen is that the gold of the barrel warms in the hand as you use it.

The precious metal section of the Drake leaves the weight centred low in the hand, ensuring that the pen is well balanced when writing. Each pen is engraved with the name Drake on the cap band, and a likeness of The Golden Hind on the cap top. The pen bears the English Hallmark, the world accepted standard for precious metal.

The Drake Vermeil limited edition pen is available in an edition of just 100 pieces. It is mounted with a large iridium tipped 18 carat solid gold nib, offered in eight grades, and uses a converter cartridge filling mechanism.

About Conway Stewart

Conway Stewart & Co. was founded in 1905 by Frank Jarvis and Thomas Garner, and opened for business at 13 Paternoster Row, London EC1, next to St Paul's Cathedral. Although there is some debate about the origins of the company's name, it is thought to derive from a popular vaudeville act of the day. 'Conway and Stewart' were supposedly a comedy double act who appeared at Collins Music Hall in Islington.

The company quickly established itself as one of the era's leading manufacturers of fountain pens, upgrading its facilities numerous times to keep up with demand. When it moved to Shoe Lane in 1923, it occupied six floors and employed over 500 people. In 1935 its shares were listed on the London Stock Exchange.

During the huge growth in letter writing during the First World War, Conway Stewart pens played a significant part in the cherished letters that passed between soldiers at the front and loved ones at home. Its pens were also used throughout World War II by Winston Churchill.

In the 1960s the company continued to manufacture, but the advent of the ballpoint pen altered the market for quality fountain pens dramatically, and in 1975 it stopped production. Fortunately, its trademarks, designs and archives were maintained, and in the 1990s, when the business was re-born with a focus on luxury fountain pens, it was able to draw on this rich heritage..

Conway Stewart is now based in Plymouth, where each pen is made by hand using a blend of old and new techniques. True to the aims of its founders, Jarvis and Garner, the company continues to produce elegant, timelessly beautiful, yet functional writing instruments for discerning pen-lovers the world over.