Faber, Lothar von

Faber, Lothar von

(born June 12, 1817, Stein, Bavaria—died July 26, 1896, Stein) German manufacturer of writing products and art supplies. He took over the family pencil business in Bavaria and transformed it into a worldwide firm, establishing branches throughout Europe and the U.S. and contracting in 1856 for exclusive control of all graphite being mined in Siberia. His brother John Eberhard Faber (1822–79) settled in the U.S. in 1849 and built a large Faber manufacturing plant. The Eberhard Faber Pencil Co. was incorporated in the U.S. in 1898, and in the same year the German company was renamed Faber-Castell. The contemporary company, Faber-Castell AG, manufactures pens, pencils, and art supplies.