Are these jackets Mink? Or another type of fur?

[Kambry Morrison]

Hello,

I recently came into a collection of some great true vintage fur coats. I am a novice to fur identification and am hoping for some help! I have attached photos of three jackets.

1.) A full length walnut colored fur with long pelts and seems to be similar to mink? However, the Guard hairs seem to be a bit longer than what I've seen of mink before, also the Guard hairs seem to be in concentrated rows rather than all over. I hope this description makes sense to you

2.) This is a vintage Revillon Fur. It's just adorable and seems to be a sheared fur of some sort. Guard hairs are still present but sporatic. The color is light blonde and the under fur is soft but not at all fluffy...

3.) This is a short coat of a greyed brown color and it is incredibly soft and fluffy. The pelts are long cut like a mink but there are no present guard hairs. The individual hairs are super soft and light and variegate in color.

Any help from all of you would be so much appreciated as I am learning all about this!

 

[foreveraftervintage]

Hi, The first is Muskrat and the third is Russian Squirrel. I am not sure about the 2nd. I might need to see, touch, and examine it in person to identify because the guardhair and underfur is inconsistent throughout and I cannot make out any pelt definition.

 

[Kambry Morrison]

Hi Caryn,

Thank you SOOOOO Much for your help. I have been reading these forums to learn and have seen your expert replies for others as well!
I would have not thought that the first was muskrat as I have 2 other jackets from this collection that (from your answers to others) seem like muskrat in texture and the way the fur is cut. I have attached the photos of these here.

Anyway, the coat in my original photo 1. seems quite different than these. Perhaps its just a different type of muskrat? Again, I am a novice so your help is truly appreciated!

 

[foreveraftervintage]

Hi again Kambry, You are most welcome. How excellent to read that my comments are read and appreciated.

Your lighter colored Muskrat coat was dyed and crafted very well to mimic Mink. It is hard to make out the definition of the pelts although I was able to do so though when supersizing your images on my monitor. The length of the guardhair as well as the thickness helped me to identify it also as well as the bit of guardhair wear on the cuffs which is common in Muskrat.

The photos you just posted of the other coat was also dyed and crafted to look like mink however it was made to mimic darker colored mink and the seam lines of the pelts are more noticeable. Is there any labeling inside the darker coat you just posted or any stamping on the pelts that you can see, can you show me a closer photo of the collar like you did the lighter colored one, and maybe a closer view of one of the cuffs? The close up shown looks a lot like Marmot but I would like to see those other views to see the guardhairs better.

Muskrats from different regions may feel more soft or less soft and male pelts vs female pelts or any pelts for that matter may be a different size depending on how much of each pelt was used.

Both coats were intended to look like let out Mink.

 

[foreveraftervintage]

I wanted to come back to this thread because I just happened to be browsing eBay and noticed these furs are being offered for sale there.

In your initial post in this thread I looked at photos of three furs.
1. I thought was muskrat but upon viewing the other photos of this coat on eBay I think that one is actually wild mink so my apologies to you. There is significant fur wear on the cuffs and there is fur wear along the backside at the bottom by the hem.
2. I was unsure of the fur type. After viewing your additional photos on eBay I am still unsure of the fur type however it does not look like Mink.
3. The third fur is a jacket and is indeed Russian Squirrel. I see you revised the title of your listing but your description states the fur to be rabbit fur styled to look like mink which is incorrect.

In your subsequent reply post you sought additional assistance providing two more photos which I thought were both the same garment; one being a full photo of the back of the coat and the next being a close up of the fur on that coat. The full back photo looked like Muskrat but the close up photo confused me because it looked like Marmot so I asked for more photos and info.
After seeing your listings though I see that those were photos from two different coats.
1. The full photo showing the back of the coat is Muskrat.
2. The close up photo is indeed Marmot.

EBay shows when revisions are made to listings and I noticed that after posting here your listings were revised to call your Non-Mink coats Woodland Mink without any disclosure of the real fur types or any mention that they were not really Mink. These coats are not Mink, should not be titled this way, or described this way.

You also mentioned your reply post that you had seen my replies here to others in the past. It may just be a coincidence but I did previously assist another guest here in another thread who had a coat they thought was Mink. I identified it as Muskrat and they were a bit in disbelief until they found stamping on the hind side of the pelts that said Muskrat Woodland Mink.
In 1952 the US Fair label products act went into effect requiring furs to have the real name of the fur in titles and descriptions and fictitious names like Woodland Mink were no longer allowed in advertising, labeling, or invoicing without stating what the real name of the furs were.

We're glad you came here to seek assistance regarding your vintage furs. We're happy to help. I hope you will use the information shared to help you learn about what you have and how to properly describe it to others.