Levi's 501XX Late 1950s Paper Patch Jeans with Guarantee Text, Uneven V, Paint-Splattered Indigo, Approx. W29
Levi's 501XX Late 1950s Paper Patch Jeans with Guarantee Text, Uneven V, Paint-Splattered Indigo, Approx. W29
- Dispatch
- Prepared and sent from Tokyo within 7–14 days, often sooner, or as arranged
- Arrival
- États-Unis · usually 4–7 days after dispatch, insured and tracked
- Import
Duties and customs · View the estimate
A guide for this piece: about $229, based on the 10% US charge on the declared value of goods made in Japan.
The final figure is set by US Customs and depends on where the piece was made and the kind of object it is. Many antiques over a century old carry no ordinary duty; most jewellery and leather goods add a single-digit rate.
With EMS, any charge is collected by your postal service on delivery. For pieces of significant value we can often arrange duties prepaid before dispatch.
How the estimate is reached · Ask for a figure on this piece
- Sizing
- Measured flat by hand, waist, rise and inseam, in centimetres · Find your size · Ask before you buy
- Replies
- Within one Tokyo business day · Ask the curator team
- Guarantee
- Authenticity guaranteed · How we grade
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A late-1950s Levi's 501XX with the paper patch still bearing its guarantee text, uneven V stitching at the top button and a striking spray of old red paint across the denim.
The Piece
In the mid-1950s Levi's replaced the leather patch with card-stock paper, and for a short period that paper still carried the full 'Every Garment Guaranteed' wording collectors call the gala. Those patches were fragile from the start, so a 501XX that retains one, even damaged, is now a scarce find. The uneven V stitching beside the top button is another marker of the period, the result of the waistband being sewn on in separate passes.
This pair shows both. The paper patch is present with its red print and two-horse logo, cracked and torn through the middle but clearly readable as a XX patch. The front closes on four buttons plus the waistband shank, the back pockets carry concealed rivets, and the red tab is still attached at the right back pocket. Selvedge with its red line shows at the cuffs.
What sets it apart visually is the red paint. It is spattered across both legs, the seat and one back pocket, the kind of honest workshop history that some collectors seek out and others prefer to admire on a hanger. Beneath it the denim has faded to a pale, textured blue with crisp contrast along the seams.
Tagged 31, it measures nearer a 29 inch waist, with a 69 cm inseam.
Details
- Designer: Levi Strauss & Co.
- Season: Late 1950s to early 1960s
- Model / ref: 501XX, paper patch with guarantee text, uneven V
- Material: Cotton selvedge denim
- Colour: Faded indigo with red paint
- Made in: USA
- Tagged size: 31 (measures approx. W29)
- Measurements: Waist 74 cm (37 cm flat) · Hip 51 cm flat · Rise 28 cm · Inseam 69 cm
- Included: Jeans only
Condition
- Vintage with genuine wear, paint and damage, priced accordingly.
- Red paint marks across the legs, seat and back pocket.
- Paper patch torn through the centre but present and legible.
- Tears at the thighs and wear at the pocket edges and hems.
- Fraying at the top button area and front seams.
Condition grade BC on the Japanese scale; see Japanese condition ranks, explained.
Authenticity & Care
The labels, materials, stitching, hardware and construction are examined together and documented in Japan before dispatch; anything that cannot be confirmed is stated plainly in the description. Every piece carries the Japonista authenticity guarantee. Do not machine wash; spot clean gently and hang to dry to protect the paper patch and the paint.
Delivery from Japan
Packed by hand in Japan and shipped insured and tracked by EMS or an equivalent express service. Import duties and taxes, where applicable, are payable on arrival. Every sale is final; please ask anything before you buy, and see our published policy.
Every figure above is taken by hand with the pair laid flat, in centimetres. Measure jeans or trousers that already fit you the same way and allow a centimetre or two of margin, the quiet safeguard on a final sale. Our jeans and trousers size guide reads waist and inseam in inches and centimetres, and for anything it leaves open the curator team replies within one Tokyo business day.
Considered offers are welcome through Send an Offer, and each one is reviewed personally. Pieces over $1,000 may be reserved over several payments with Layaway Privilege™.
Continue browsing: Japan Luxury Archive · Levi’s
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Collectors also search: Levi's 501XX paper patch · 501XX gala patch · 1950s Levi's 501XX · Levi's uneven V · vintage Levi's paint jeans · 501XX hidden rivets · vintage Levi's W29 · Levi's paper patch guarantee
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