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The Hiro 41 nib is made by Manuscript Pen Company, a family-owned business based in Shropshire, England that branched off from D. Leonardt & Co. in the mid-1900s. Founded in 1856 in Birmingham, England, Leonardt is one of the oldest manufacturers of dip pens. The company expanded rapidly after its opening, exporting writing instruments throughout South America and Europe. Eventually, Leonardt’s products were considered such high quality that they produced pens for the King of Italy. Although Leonardt stopped producing calligraphy supplies a number of years ago, Manuscript Pen Co. has continued the production of high-quality dip pens and other writing accoutrements in their stead.

All calligraphy above was done with the Hiro 41 nib. Artists are as follows:

"Breath of Nature" by @jkcalligraphy_

"Wednesday" by @the.lazy.cat.writes

"Blue Blue Sky" by @scriptedbyf

"Enjoy the Little Things" by @arneywalker

Also called the Crown nib due to its unique shape, the Hiro 41 is very flexible and holds more ink than typical pointed pens. Large and durable, this pen easily transitions from thicks to thins and produces healthy swells.

The Hiro 41 is an extremely smooth nib, gliding like a dream over even heavily textured papers. Try using this nib on rough, cold-pressed watercolor paper and you will not be disappointed. Unlike sharper nibs, the Hiro 41 will not catch or pull paper fibers but will glide smoothly across the surface, even on upstrokes.

The Hiro 41 is quite popular for Copperplate calligraphy. Under a practiced hand, this nib can produce good hairlines, but is not suited for extremely delicate scripts such as Spencerian. This nib is extremely flexible and may be difficult for beginner calligraphers who have a heavy hand. However, newbies with a light touch and those who struggle with nibs catching or pulling will love the Hiro 41. Try adding this nib to your collection!

Calligraphy by Jennifer Allen

Hiro 41 nibs can be purchased here.