Cross Townshend “Marbled Green” Lacquer BPs

My Cross Townshend ballpoint in marbled green lacquer was introduced in 1994. The ballpoint is weighty because it is made of brass. It was the matching ballpoint to my Cross Townshend marbled green fountain pen (now lost). The cap is engraved with my name, a free service by the Cross retail shop where I bought it. The BP was originally equipped with a rubber tip for use with a monochrome Palm Pilot, an early Personal Digital Assistant (PDA).

I recently found another marbled green lacquer Cross Townshend ballpoint on sale at just HKD 100 from a Carousel seller. The clip has two attachment holes, suggesting it originally bore a logo. Fortunately, there are no dings or scratches on the barrel.

The Townshend range was initially positioned as an “affordable luxury” line, targeted at professionals who wanted a nice pen to take to the office.

In recent years though the market has been flooded by many Cross pens in cheaper price ranges like the Coventry and Calais. As a result, the second hand value of even the upmarket Townshend pens that use to sell for US$ 100 up have been affected.

A recent acquisition from a Carousell seller (below) with my personal pen (top)