STATESMANSHIP AND GRATITUDE
On July 3rd, 1859, perhaps the most beautiful train ever constructed made its maiden voyage from Porta Maggiore to Cecchina. It was a gift from the Pio Centrale and Pio Latina railway companies to Pope Pius IX in recognition of his great enthusiasm for Italian industry. With the pontiff’s patronage and personal blessing, rail construction accelerated across the Papal States, connecting Rome to Frascati, Civitavecchia, Velletri, Ceprano, Ancona, and Bologna—more than 200 miles (over 300 kilometers) of new line in less than five years. Pius IX, the first pontiff ever to be photographed, supported not only railways but also the expansion of ports, the raising of bridges, and the broader prosperity that bound Italy’s infrastructure to that of Europe at large.
The so-called “Vatican on Wheels” was a three-car masterpiece built in France and ornately adorned by masters such as Gérôme and Cambon—painted panels, wrought iron, sculpted copper, all in exquisite harmony. Today, the surviving cars can be viewed in the collection of the Centrale Montemartini museum in Rome, where ancient statuary stands among the retired machinery of a power station—a striking monument to the harmonies that can exist between the ancient and the novel.
TOMATO RED
Switchman’s Tomato Red captures the hues of the finest Italian tomatoes—shading through bright oranges into rich reds and on into soft pinks as layers build on the page. It is our hope that, as you write with this ink, you’ll carry forward a spirit of patronage, generosity, and gratitude. While Pope Pius IX remade Italy on a grand scale and was thanked in grand fashion, the world is not moved by occasional monumental gestures. Rather, it is the product of countless small and seemingly insignificant moments of kindness and gratitude. They are like the countless tiny seeds which, when planted and nurtured, yield a bountiful harvest.
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