The English made Parker 51 Aerometric was introduced in 1950. This pen carries a clear date code for the secondquarter of 1951, indicating that it was one of an early batch of '51' Aerometrics produced in England.
The filler sleeve is made from polished aluminium, it was replaced by the familiar matt version later in the year.
The pen has been fully serviced and tested, it is in first class condition throughout. Finished in classic black, it has a showroom surface, an unstained ink sac, and, unusually for a '51', a clear barrel imprint showing the date '1' surrounded by rwo dots.
The date stamp used for each year started with three dots at the beginning of the year and one dot was removed at the end of each quarter so that Q1 had 3 dots, Q2 2 dots, Q3 1 dot and Q4 no dots. This pen was therefore made between April and June 1951.
The 'Lustralloy' cap is ding free and has a good surface, the original frosting is still in good candition. It carries the correct chromed 'long arrow' clip and pearl coloured cap stud.
The two stickers and the original instruction leaflet give the pen good provenance. One sticker refers to a 'New Parker 51', agreeing with the instruction leaflet. This designation, to make it clear that it was different to the earlier 51 vacumatic, was only used for a very short time. The other sticker gives the nib style, a broad oblique.
The Aerometric filling system works well and the 14Ct. Gold oblique nib offers line variation depending on the direction of the line and the oriebtation of the point in, contact with the paper. The hooded nib design of the '51' precludes any flexibility so an oblique or italic nib is needed to add character to the writing. Using an oblique may take a little practice and experimentation but it is well worth the effort.
The box has seen better days, but it is the original 'Mock croc' English box so should be kept with the pen and leaflet.
The Parker 51 went on to become the best selling pen of all time and can be said to have achieved iconic status in the true sense of the word. This pen is an unusually fine, correct and complete, example of a narrow 'time slice' in the history of the Parker 51.