A Long, Well-Worn Work Coat: Weathered, Striped, Heavy Cotton

early twentieth century
shoulder to hem x sleeve tip to sleeve tip: 45" x 49", 114.5 cm x 124.5 cm

This long, coat-like cotton jacket is made of a now very supple type of light cotton canvas cloth which has been woven with warp-based white stripes.

This is a style of coat that was said to be worn by woodworkers, whether that means carpenter or lumberman is unclear, but there is a consensus among those in Japan who offer these for sale that whoever wore this worked with wood in some capacity.

As can be seen this beauty shows a good deal of wear and age in the form of surface abrasion, light fading, patching, fraying, mending--and the addition of a pocket on the proper left, front inside of the coat!

This coat is as wearable as it is displayable and please check the dimensions above to get an idea of its length and volume. 

The wear to the coat is especially nice as it indicates repetitive activity. This ignites the imagination, sparking ideas about who wore this, when and what they were engaged with--and for how long.

This is a really good, old garment with lots of personality and soul.