Koh-I-Noor

Not only does Koh-I-Noor have a long history, it’s also intertwined with a famous royal. And not just any royal -- Queen Victoria of Great Britain was the one who gave Koh-I-Noor its name.

It all started in 1790, when Joseph Hardtmuth developed his one-of-a-kind pencils. About a hundred years later, Hardtmuth pencils so impressed Queen Victoria that she took it upon herself to name the Koh-I-Noor pencil. The Koh-I-Noor pencil was named after the Koh-I-Noor Diamond, one of the British Crown Jewels.

The Koh-I-Noor brand eventually expanded westward to America. Koh-I-Noor Europe developed art materials as well as school and office supplies, while its American counterpart developed high-quality technical drawing supplies.

Today, Koh-I-Noor has expanded from producing graphite pencils to producing aquarelle pencils, watercolor paints, oil pastels, and a wide variety of art tools.