Help needed with fur coat possibly 50's

C

Clair Holmes

Registered Guest
I have been given a fur coat.
I have been told by the original purchaser that it is Beaver but I am not sure now from reading about beaver fur, this is very very soft.
I have worked out that it was bought in the 50's (I think as new)
It has 2 labels on it. One is: Ross (furriers) LTD Leeds - the other says styled in Fur Processed by Martins ? of London.
It doesn't
have buttons it has hooks and ring which are hidden in the fur.
I am just trying to find out some more information about it as would like to know just out of interest and then maybe I can decide what to do with it.

c3.JPG
c2.JPG
c4.JPG
c5.JPG
 
Last edited:
I'm sure our fur expert will be along to help identify the fur. In order to help determine age, we would need to see the cut of the coat. If you are able to take a photo on person or hanger - front and back - this would be helpful.
 
Hi That's a beautiful fur coat. I would date it to the 50s and it's sheared beaver. Natural beaver has longer guardhairs that feel soft when new but as it ages the guardhairs start to feel wirey. The longer guardhair which is the top layer of fur helps protect beaver from wet conditions and water. The underfur helps to keep it warm. When beaver is sheared only the underfur remains which feels very soft as you have described. :)
 
Ok great thanks for that, now what to do with it? It has a interesting history belonged by someone semi famous (was in films) if I keep it I will never wear it and will end up in my loft in storage which seems a shame.
 
You are most welcome. There are a few options. You should explore your possibilities as to what will turn out best for you.

If it has some sort of worthy history to it and belonged to someone semi famous and you have documentation showing that you might want to talk to a museum who is either interested in the type of person it belonged to or clothing for the history of it.

You could also consider selling it; either doing so yourself or asking a consignment store to sell it for you. In the case of selling it you could search sold listings on eBay for similar sheared beaver fur coats to get an idea of what they sell for.

You could also donate it to a worthy cause and possibly file it as a tax deduction depending on where you live.

The choice depends on what you find from your research and which option will be best for you.

Good luck with it whatever you choose.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top