Associazione Archivio Storico Olivetti - Olivetti "Lexikon" typewriter

The "Lexikon 80" typewriter is a true innovation compared to previous models from Olivetti: from a mechanical point of view, the carriage is lightened and the cinematic mechanisms that transmit the movement to the 45 character keys are rethought; in this way, writing becomes faster and improves print quality. But the strength of the machine is certainly the design: the line is elegant, characterized by a rounded shell that hides the mechanical part; the carriage lever has a light and ergonomic shape; the beige color (and light blue in later versions) is soothing and breaks with the traditional black of professional machines. Between 1948 and 1960, Olivetti sold around 800,000 Lexikon 80s and the machine was included in the permanent collections of the MOMA (Museum of Modern Art) in New York.