Astoria
A short history of Astoria brand:
The history of Astoria fountain pens starts in 1921 when the company was founded in Hamburg by Georg Ilgner, a former Montblanc production director, along with Herman Dietzel, Siegmund Popper, and Wilhelm Frings. Astoria pens strongly resembled Montblanc’s early models and even had a similar logo with alternating black and white segments. The company specialized in high-quality safety pens, lever fillers, and later pushbutton fillers, often featuring gold or silver overlays. Their pens were known for craftsmanship and materials like ebonite and were successful in exporting across Europe.
Astoria flourished mainly during the 1920s but faced financial difficulties due to the Great Depression. In 1932, Montblanc acquired Astoria and continued selling pens under the Astoria brand until about 1936. Some rare evidence suggests the brand persisted in limited production beyond that, but Montblanc discontinued it as a main line. The brand was revived again in 2009, with renewed emphasis on handmade quality using ebonite.
Notably, Astoria introduced innovations such as the DUX twist filler, a variant of push-button fillers for easier ink sac compression. Despite its relatively short original production span, Astoria pens are highly collectible today due to their quality and heritage linked to Montblanc expertise.
Key points about Astoria fountain pens history:
- Founded 1921 in Hamburg by ex-Montblanc production director Georg Ilgner and colleagues
- Produced safety pens, lever fillers, pushbutton fillers, often with gold or silver overlays
- Exported widely in Europe, valued for craftsmanship and quality materials like ebonite
- Financial struggles during the 1930s led to Montblanc takeover in 1932
- Montblanc maintained the Astoria brand until about 1936
- Brand revived in 2009 with continued focus on handmade, high-quality pens
- Known for the innovative DUX twist filler system
- Pens remain collectible, often mistaken for Montblanc due to similarities in design and quality.
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This table shows all in my database available Astoria writing instruments.
To a particular Astoria please use the above menu.
Click on a picture to enlarge it.
This list is sorted by period of production and model/number.
For more information about following writing instruments please select
| # | Model/Number | Period | Picture | |
| 1. | Astoria-Dux 4 L | 1919 |  | |
