Two misplaced fountain pens
mistakes at the Money Museum (Budapest)

On 15 March 2022, the Money Museum, founded by the Hungarian National Bank, was opened on Széll Kálmán Square (still called Moscow Square by the political opposition, although that name has now acquired a different resonance), in the former Postal Palace. An exhibition on the history of money is housed in a quarter of the building's floor space. Unfortunately I was unable to make it to the opening ceremony, but I recently made up for it by visiting the museum. During my trip, I came across two fountain pens on display. I shouldn't have.

Admission is free, but online registration is required. At my booked time, I received an office-style access card at the ground-floor reception desk. I activated it by entering a nickname at a terminal in the basement, then used it to go up to the second floor, where the magic began. All information is available in Hungarian, English and Chinese. Along the route marked by a strip of light, interactive stations let visitors use their cards to trade crops or securities. Before leaving, they can print a gold, silver or bronze certificate according to the number of virtual coins they have collected. Visitors can also grasp a solid gold bar, whose ends are firmly secured.

Lost Little Buddy

Among the forest of monitors and projectors, I came across the following spectacular installation. The atmosphere of the past was created by the circa 1890-1920 photograph in the background, the desk in front of it and the office supplies on it. On the inkstand, I noticed a fountain pen and several pieces of sealing wax.

An inkstand was typically used with a dip pen, which would rest between the two inkwells. Pairing an inkstand with a fountain pen is rather unusual, but not inconceivable. However, the black fountain pen on display is from a different world.

The "Little Buddy" pen was easily identifiable, a product of the early Kádár (communist) era. The pen was placed in such a way that the brand name would not spoil the overall impression, but it is certain that a bank employee did not use a pen made for small school children even under the Kádár regime. Perhaps the exhibitor could have chosen a more elegant and relevant pen.

Misplaced Parker 51

The final part of the exhibition features Hungarian explorers and designers. Here I spotted the second misplaced fountain pen, a Parker 51. It is a beautiful piece, and its matching, flawless 51 case is a real rarity. It was immediately clear what the exhibitor had in mind. There is a myth that the Parker 51 was designed by Moholy-Nagy. I wrote an article in December 2021 refuting this, but belief can move mountains.

However, the date 1922 in the background has no clear connection to the display, as the number 51 of the Parker 51 refers to the 51st anniversary of the founding of the Parker company, when this fountain pen was released (1888+51=1939). Moholy-Nagy's artwork was exhibited, along with that of László Péli, at the Der Sturm gallery in Berlin in 1922, and the Parker company was in the United States. Moholy-Nagy came into contact with the Parker firm in the mid-1940s, shortly before his death.

But take two steps to the right in the exhibition space, and in the next window we meet the inventor László Bíró. The picture and the date are correct. The Parker Jotter ballpoint pen displayed as an illustration, which Google mistakenly shows on page 7260 as having been designed by Moholy-Nagy, is not the best guess. There is a ballpoint pen with the Biro logo. On this pen and its box, as well as on the enclosed papers, we find the inventor’s name. Just as a suggestion, it might be worth replacing the red Jotter with this one.

The robot at the exit said a sad goodbye to me. It displayed the message “Config error”.
Super robot, you were right!