Fountain pens were commonly used in the early years of writing. Most of the pens used before the fountain pen, were not good enough due to the fact that they either left marks on the paper or leaked out ink. When the fountain pen was introduced it immediately made the cut and has lasted throughout the time. Nowadays, fountain pens still exist and they are usually found in higher-class establishments like banks, hotels or restaurants. Some people use them as their main writing tool, while some others like to collect them. Sometimes they are used to create a wonderful atmosphere in certain places of business.

What distinguishes fountain pens is a reservoir of water-based ink in them. The ink is fed to the nib of the pen through a cube and uses a combination of gravity and capillary action. In order to fill the reservoir with ink you have to either replace a disposable ink cartridge or use an eyedropper to fill in the ink. This turns out to be a very difficult process compared to modern day pens which use a disposable cartridge with a screw or piston to fill the pen.

After the introduction of the Bic pen, fountain pens stopped being used as much as before. A Bic pen comes with ink in it and you simple throw it away when it runs out and use another one. However, there is a big number of collectors who cherish these unique and fun styles of pens that were once so important.

The collectors of fountain pens keep them safe without changing anything about them to keep their value. There are many brands of fountain pens that people like to collect. The age of the pen along with its material is also very important to the collector. A gold or silver-plated pen for example is considered very desirable for some people.