The Parker 61 Classic in maroon was introduced in 1969 and discontinued in 1975.
This rotary action pencil is in totally mint condition and shows no signs of use. The eraser is pristine and there is a full set of new leads stored in the barrel. The factory 'chalk marks' are made with a wax stencil and were intended as information for the retailer, to be removed as the pencil was sold.
I've described the colour as Maroon, but it is actually a few shades brighter than the 'maroon' fountain pen, so perhaps it's Rage Red.
The customer could request that the chalk marks be left intact, usually if the item was to become part of a collection and not intended for use. The marks are very fragile and would disappear quickly as the pencil was handled.
The Parker case is from a later pen but it will servr for protection, display, and transport.
Mechanical pencils have seen an upsurge in popularity recently with new models ranging form a few pounds to over two hundred. The vast majority of these new pwncils, however, use the simple and cheap to make 'click action' clutch type mechanism. The original rotary mechanism, as in this vintage pencil, is much more robust and is generally only found on the more expensive new pencils.