The 496 is not often seen and that’s a pity because it’s a beautiful pen. The patterned ones are exceptionally lovely in their schist-like colours but even the black pen is inordinately handsome and stands out from other Conway Stewarts of the time, which is around 1930 – 1935. The taper at the top of the cap sets it off as something unusual and refined. It’s not the only Conway Stewart with that elegant profile – I had a piston filler that looked the same some time ago. The number for that one has slipped from my colander memory, I’m afraid. You see a similar tapered top in some Onotos and De La Rue pens. It takes as little as changing the taper on the cap top to take a pen from pleasant to exquisite.
The pencil is a handsome Duro Point which has no number. I can’t tell if these make a true set as they came in a box which is not original and Donahaye’s list shows no paired pencil for the 496. However, with their matching twin rings they look as though they should be together.
On an entirely different subject, I see crusty old ossified Conway Stewart sacs all the time. I showed some a few posts back, in fact. Mabie Todd ones are rather less common but I found one this week and here it is. Sorry that the closed end had crumbled but enough remains to make it recognisable, I think.
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I have to agree with you Deborah, the tapered cap and barrel plus the domed top set the pen off very well.
It is surprising that Conway persisted with the squarer shape of the 286/ 475 ranges. I suspect it was down to the very conservative tastes of the home market (or management).
Probably, though it was a good seller with De La Rue, and you would think Conway Stewart could have persisted with it. But they didn’t and we’re left with a few models showing these elegant lines.