Friday, April 10, 2026

Who made the Aztecs?

At the California pen show Chris Odgers came up to me to share a recent discovery: a sterling silver flat pencil holder with American Indian motifs in high relief. A beautiful and striking item in itself, but of broader importance in that the motifs are the very same as those on the celebrated Parker Aztec.


The pencil holder is fully marked as a Mabie Todd product. Mabie Todd, however, has never been identified as a supplier of overlays to other companies -- a reminder that absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. While we have long known that Heath supplied overlays to Parker, we don't know how many other suppliers Parker might have used.  




Thanks to Chris Odgers for sharing his discovery, and apologies for taking so long to get it posted. The photos of his pencil are his, and are used with his permission. Any errors and omissions are mine.