a Plume was a smaller ladies pen (about 120 millimeters long) made in France in the late 1940's. It was introduced around 1947 and initially was a Vacumatic filler. Interestingly enough it had the aluminium plunger, replaced on the American Vacumatics already in 1942 with a plastic one. The first year or so La Plume was offered in two finishes, either with a plastic cap sporting three narrow cap bands on a slim, tapered cap, not unlike the English New Duofolds of the 1950's. The other model had a pin striped Double gold layered cap finish referred to as the "Double Or Laminé". La Plume had a flexible, open 18 k gold nib and was produced in the four solid colours of Black, Blue, Green and Red.

In 1948 the vacumatic filler was replaced by an aerometric filler, the filler being of the same model as the Parker "21" of the period, with an U-shaped metal bar around the pli-glass sac, rather than the sac being encapsulated as on the Parker "51"'s. The three-ringed version was discontinued.

a Plume could be argued a "cousin" to the Parker "VS" (Vacumatic successor) which was also introduced in 1947. The "VS" had its button filler replaced with an aerometric filler in 1948. Both lines a sort of hybrid between the English New Duofold line and the Parker "51". Also the "VS" are commonly found with a flexible nib.

And as with the Parker "VS" La Plume was an endevour to capture the potential market of the customers that still preferred an open gold nib to the hidden nibs of the Parker "51", hopefully to find a niche in the high end market with the "Double Or Laminé" cap and 18k nib. But it seemed that the public was not yet ready for an open nibbed high end pen from Parker. This would take another ten years or so, with the introduction of the fabulous Parker "75", and La Plume was discontinued in the early 1950's.

La plume is increasingly illusive and is very collectible, especially the early vacumatic fillers.

The Parker La plume vacumatic filler ca 1947.

The Parker La plume "Double Or Laminé", ca 1948.