The Italian brand Leonardo has received a lot of attention over the last year or so and also earned a meaningful place in my own pen collection. Over the last several months, another Italian brand Maiora has entered the market. In a year without pen shows, this new release stayed a little more under my personal radar than it otherwise may have, so I was excited to finally get the chance to get one of these pens in hand to test out. Both brands are resurrections of the Delta pen brand, and there’s no denying their similarities. However, there are also a few meaningful differences.

The first difference that is immediately noticeable is the packaging. The Maiora packaging is unlike any other pen packaging I have personally seen. The outside box covering opens to reveal a plastic cover attached with elastic bands to a layer of protective foam. It seems a little unnecessarily large (to be fair I feel this way about most pen packaging), but at least it’s a diversion from the dozens of other typical black pen boxes I have sitting in my office closet.

The pen section and the clip are the other two differences I immediately noticed. The section is wider than the Leonardo section and has a more distinct shape. Unlike other shaped sections (I’m thinking of the Lamy Safari or TWSBI Eco), this section seems to be one that would likely be almost universally comfortable. Visually, I prefer the section of the Leonardo pens. But I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the feel of this section in actual writing. Honestly, if there’s one feature that would have me reaching for this pen over one of my Leonardo pens it may be the added comfort of this section shape.

The clip is also a major diversion from the Leonardo brand and also the original Delta brand. It is multi layered and square. It’s a solid clip, and for me it is really just a matter of personal taste as to which type of clip you prefer between the two brands.

Comparing the Maiora directly to two of the Leonardo (one regular and one oversize) pens in my collection, the similarities in overall shape and styling become apparent as well as the similarities in materials. Just like Leonardo, the initial material offerings in the Maiora line are excellent.

The Posillipo material of this specific pen not only incorporates several shades of blue but also has areas of transparency that give the material depth and texture. Looking across the Maiora line, one thing that catches my interest is that they not only have a solid black matte pen, but they also have several pens that have matte black caps and ends mixed with the other resins utilized for the pen barrels.

The Maiora Impronte line is fitted with steel Jowo nibs, and the M nib of my specific pen was a smooth, wet writer and overall a joy to use. One area where I feel Maiora lags behind Leonardo however, is that the nibs are not completely customized, but are the standard line Jowo nibs with added laser engraving in the middle of the nib with the company logo and name.

Unfortunately, the laser engraving on my specific pen was decently off center. While this type of detail certainly doesn’t impact the use of the pen, it detracts from the overall look of the pen especially when you compare it to something like the recent ACS pen release that Ana covered last week in a similar price range.

The initial Maiora pens share the same “captured converter” filling system of the Leonardo pen line. The converters are long enough to stick out of the end of the pen, so that when you unscrew the endcap you have immediate access to the end of the converter and can fill the pen without taking it completely apart. The Maiora converter is a little longer than the Leonardo version with a slightly different shape at the end of the converter and added branding.

Overall, I’m impressed with the initial Maiora offerings and think the Impronte line is yet another strong contender in the $175-$200 price range. As of right now, the Impronte comes in two sizes with the Oversize being priced at the exact same price as its smaller counterpart. The Impronte only comes with steel nibs options, but I did notice that Appleboom now has a limited edition Maiora with a gold nib. I will definitely be keeping a close eye on the Maiora brand to see how it continues to evolve and how their path stays similar or diverts from their fellow Italian maker Leonardo.

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DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were loaned by Appelboom for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.