Sailor

Japanese pen maker founded in Kure; known for hand-ground gold nibs and special nibs for Japanese writing.

Kyugoro Sakata founded the company in Kure in Hiroshima, a city with a large naval dockyard, and the name Sailor comes from the sailors he met. He made Japan's first fountain pens with gold nibs.

Sailor became known for nibs ground by hand and for special nibs such as the Nagahara, developed by the master Nobuyoshi Nagahara. The company has also made pens with urushi lacquer.

An anchor in the logo; the nib’s gold content stamped (14K or 21K).

• Pens and writing