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Visconti Watermark

The Visconti Watermark fountain pen was released in 2016 to much acclaim.  To me it is one of the most desirable fountain pens from Visconti I have ever seen- more so than some of the Limited Edition Ripples and Skeletons that run into the many thousands of Euros.  The skeleton or cage overlay is made of 92.5% pure silver.  The silver is covered  with a thin layer of Palladium to prevent discolouration.  There is a small 925 sterling silver marking at the base of the barrel.

The Watermark is a Limited Edition fountain pen with just 888 in circulation worldwide.  There is also a gold plate version of the same pen.

Mine is #122/888.  Here it is…

As you can see the pen has a large sterling silver section that is smooth but has some kind of tactile grip to it as I don’t find it slippery at all.  I know the sterling silver section has put some people off this pen, but for me it is just fine.  Maybe because I live in a cold country the slipperiness is not an issue.

A large Visconti logo adorns the cap.  I believe this same finial is used in the Carbon Dream, the Millionaire and some of the other high end, beefier editions.  The classic Visconti clip inspired from the famous Ponte Vechio bridge in Florence, is filled with a sparkly white enamel which I haven’t seen before and looks very attractive.

The sterling silver cage lays atop a clear acrylic “demonstrator” barrel, allowing you to see your favourite ink sloshing around.  The cut outs on the pen are reminiscent of the Visconti “V” logo.

The pen utilises the power-filler mechanism, as with the standard Homo Sapiens model.  Unsurprisingly, the Watermark holds a LOT of ink.  I like the power-filler system, the only potential issue is finding a bottle of ink deep enough to stick the humungous nib and section into.  Luckily I have some large Montblanc and vase- shaped Sailor bottles on hand.

This is an extremely hefty pen, but I somehow find it well balanced and comfortable to use.

The 23ct carat Palladium nib is the same size as the larger Homo Sapiens model.  I purchased this fountain pen from a European retailer and was offered it at a small discount as I had built up some points from previous purchases.  The full range of nib widths were offered from EF right through to Stub.  For reasons I still to this day cannot fathom, I chose….Medium?!!

???  No me neither.  I have no idea why I chose a Medium  nib for a pen of this stature.  I think my thinking went something on the lines of …”well I just got a Visconti Corsani in EF and this pen is probably so heavy that it would be weird to have a pointy EF or Fine on it, and Broad and Double Broad nibs are for weirdo’s who enjoy writing with a fat ball of tipping (no offence), and I already have the ultimate Stub in my Homo Sapiens that Mike Masuyama customised to next-level awesomeness.  If I get a plain old factory stub” I said to myself “surely it would feel like an inferior version of this.  I know…I’ll get Medium!!!”

Initially, I must say I regretted that decision.  But now it’s here, I quite like it.  The width of the nib is very well suited to the weight of the pen, and the generous ink flow makes sheeny inks sheen even more brightly.  Also the smoothness of the nib sees me trying out different writing styles on the fly.  Sometimes with stubs and cursive italics in particular, your writing is dictated by the nib itself.  Fine if you have very messy handwriting and need some help, but what of free expression?  All in all, I’m not too disappointed with this nib.  If I had the choice again however, I think I would probably go with the factory stub.

That being said, let us turn to the writing samples.  I used Montblanc Tolstoy for these.  For some reason I have three bottles of this stuff.  It must have been on special offer or something.  Here is the Watermark in action on Rhodia paper…

I think my handwriting looks not too shabby.

And here on Hobonichi paper…

Not too shabby here either.

Verdict:

The 23ct Palladium Medium nib is very smooth, and when I have the Visconti Watermark in rotation, I find I reach for it a lot.  I like to have it filled with Montblanc UNICEF Blue.  I think the turquoise ink looks very attractive in the barrel set against the sterling silver, and those new 50ml Montblanc bottles are nice and deep to fill from- very much needed for a monster such as this.  The pen came to me in pristine condition with zero issues, as one always hopes when receiving a pen of this value.  The sterling silver overlay is quite stunning.  This is a hefty and substantial pen.  I know it sounds funny, but I feel like I’m getting my moneys worth.  I think to some extent the Visconti Watermark fulfils my dreams of owning a skeleton LE.  I know I’ll never be able to afford a Montblanc Blue Hour, but I think for me, this comes close enough.  I’m very happy I went for this one.

Visconti Corsani

The Visconti Corsani is was a collaboration between Visconti and Stylograph Corsani.  It was released in 2014 to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Rome- based store.  A limited run of 90 pens were made, including 79 fountain pens.

Here is mine…

As you can probably tell, the pen is based on Visconti’s Homo Sapiens model, but instead of the pen material being made of the volcanic lava of Mt Etna, we have a beautiful grey and silver flecked stacked celluloid.  I believe this material is similar to that used in the Visconti Wallstreet and Metropolitan.  I must say the design of the Wallstreet never really appealed to me, as the pen seemed too narrow and angular and a bit art deco.  However, I love the look of the stacked celluloid material on the Homo Sapiens model.  The curves of the pen, broken only by the two silver cap bands just looks so stylish, and very modern.  Here is the pen in all its sparkly celluloid glory…

The pen utilises the power-filler system, as with the regular Homo Sapiens, and the edition is engraved on the bottom of the power filler knob, as with the Visconti Watermark.  Here you can see mine is #30/90…

Just like the Homo Sapiens model, there is no ink window and the cap bands has “Corsani 1924-2014” engraved into it.  When I purchased this pen, I was asked if I would like my initials inlaid into the cap via the My Pen system (magnetic finial).  I said that would be great, and although it did look smart, I decided to eventually swap it out for a black onyx stone.  The beauty of the My Pen system of course is that I can change up the finial whenever I want.  So I may well go back to my initials at a later date.  Here is a close up of the stone…

Looks sharp, no?

Here it is posted- pretty unwieldy.  A pen of this size does NOT need posting…if your wondering about this whale plate, it’s from Classiky x Kata Kata…

I chose an EF nib for my Corsani.  My only other Visconti has a humungous Masuyama Stub on it, so I thought I’d go extreme in the other direction.  The relatively light weight celluloid material meant an EF nib wasn’t going to feel unbalanced in any way.  Here is a close up of the two-tone nib…

Excuse the pic, I use a prime lens and so am reduced to cropping

Here is a quick writing sample on Hobonichi paper.  I have the pen filled with Montblanc UNICEF Blue.  I love using turquoise inks in my Visconti’s, I have no idea why…

As with most Visconti Palladium nibs, this one has a bit of bounce to it.

Verdict:  I love the stylish looks of this pen.  The sparkly grey and silver stacked celluloid looks so sharp in the Homo Sapiens design.  Filling- system, size, weight and balance of the pen are all good.  The Corsani arrived at my door in perfect condition, and the EF nib has a nice wetness to it, perfect for journalling in my Hobonichi Cousin.  I also like the fact that it is a limited edition, and also a pen that you don’t see much on the pen forums or on-line.  I’m glad I got this one…and as it happens, just before the Euro eviscerated the Pound pre-Brexit vote!  Highly recommended : )