Koh-i-Noor Hardtmuth A.S.
Established 1790Founded in 1790 by Joseph Hardtmuth, Koh-i-Noor Hardtmuth A.S. is a manufacturer of a full line of pencils, pens, and art supplies. Josef Hardtmuth is the inventor of modern graphite pencil. In 1802, Hardtmuth patented an artificial graphite pencil by mixing powdered graphite with clay, lowering the price and making the product more accessible for the masses. At the 1889 World Fair in Paris, the Hardtmuth’s displayed their pencils rebranded as ‘Koh-I-Noor Hardtmuth’, named after the largest diamond in the world.
An iconic pencil needs an iconic eraser. Launched in 1896, the iconic Hardtmuth eraser with the elephant logo, made on the basis of natural caoutchouc, is still in production today. The Hardtmuth elephant is one of the oldest registered trademarks in the world.
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