When this pen was offered in eBay a few weeks ago it caught my eye.  I knew nothing about it but decided I must have it.  Its colours, quite unlike anything else around, appealed to me as did its 10-sided shape.  As it turned out, there was little interest in it and I got it easily.

The pen was made by the Pecco Brothers in Turin, who began pen-making in 1917.  They used the names Eridano, Eridania and the slightly better known brand-name Stilus.  Eridano, for what it’s worth, is the ancient Greek name for the River Po which flows through Turin.

One might be forgiven for thinking that the Pecco Brothers had a good look at the Wahl-Eversharp Doric before they sat down to design the Eridano Extra 33.  It’s ten-sided rather than 12-sided but at first glance it’s very Doric-like.  The arrow-shaped clip has come to grief at some point.  I straightened it a bit and may do some more but it doesn’t detract too much from the beauty of the pen in my opinion.

The nib it came with was beyond repair.  I had a hunt through my warranted nibs but nothing there fit.  However there was a rather splendid Swan No 1 flex stub that slotted right in and could have been made for the Eridano.

It’s a superb pen, though it suffers from being one of those brands whose name is not well or widely known.  I think I might hang on to it.  It’s time I had a new daily writer.