Can anyone help identify and date a vintage fur coat?

[pageerror404]

I acquired this coat at a secondhand store for very cheap. I bought it with the intention of gifting it to my mother. I have tried very hard to research what type of fur it is and what date range it was made, but I am not confident about anything. I guess it requires more experience to determine. Here are some photos.

This is the label. it's the only distinguishing mark I can find. It looks like the furrier is still in business in Detroit, but their website says that they are about to celebrate their 100th year... so it doesn't help me narrow it down.

Here is a full photo of the coat. For some reason the picture makes it look coarse and mangy, but it is extremely silky and soft.

This is a closeup of the fur. The darker stripes appear to be longer.

There is a small separation of the lining which allowed me take a photo of the underside of the fur part. It looks as if the coat is made out of these really thin (my thumb sort of gives a sense of scale) strips of hide stitched together. The lining itself is thick and heavy and made of several layers of different materials.

I would really love if someone could help me identify this. I want to know more about it before I give it to my mother. Thanks in advance,

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Hi pageerror404 and welcome to the forums.

Have you seen the wonderful VFG Fur Resource? You can look up pics and descriptions of lots of furs, it's a great help in identifying fur.

If you could put the fur on a person or mannequin it would be easier to see the shape but I think it's probably '50s. You can tell from the pelts that it comes from a creature that is fairly small, as a lot of pelts have been used.

 

[pageerror404]

Hi pageerror404 and welcome to the forums.

Have you seen the wonderful VFG Fur Resource? You can look up pics and descriptions of lots of furs, it's a great help in identifying fur.

If you could put the fur on a person or mannequin it would be easier to see the shape but I think it's probably '50s. You can tell from the pelts that it comes from a creature that is fairly small, as a lot of pelts have been used.

Thanks for the quick response. I did browse through those pages and it was useful in telling me what the fur isn't, but not what it is. So many of the furs look similar to me and lots of the identifiers seem subjective (silky, durable, long, soft, shiny) since I have no fur experience. For example I might think, "Yes it's soft... but is it soft enough to be X" if that makes any sense.

EDIT: To help with the date identification I will have my wife put it on tonight and take a photo. I think it's too big for her, but it's better than nothing I guess.

 

[foreveraftervintage]

Hello, Your fur looks like mink dyed marmot. Marmot is in the squirrel family and is also known as groundhog in the US. Marmot fur has often been dyed to look like mink.
The lining is a gorgeous one, a red wine silk crepe that was the popular choice in coat linings throughout the 40s. After WWII and into the 50s satin and bemberg linings in a greater variety of colors were seen more often. Based on the style and lining combined I believe your coat dates to the 40s.