Penney's 1950s Chiefs Wool Club Jacket, Grey with Felt Script Back and Chief Patch, Measured Size XL
Penney's 1950s Chiefs Wool Club Jacket, Grey with Felt Script Back and Chief Patch, Measured Size XL
- Dispatch
- Prepared and sent from Tokyo within 7–14 days, often sooner, or as arranged
- Arrival
- United States · usually 4–7 days after dispatch, insured and tracked Check the Shipping Flowchart here
- Import
Duties and customs · View the estimate
A guide for this piece: about $156, 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
- Character
- QuietResplendent Balanced 5 of 10 ·
- Replies
- Within one Tokyo business day · Ask the curator team
- Guarantee
- Authenticity guaranteed · How we grade
Every piece is measured by hand, in centimetres as Japan measures. Please allow 1–2 cm (about ½ inch) for the give of the material and the hand that held the tape.
Condition report
Very Good8.0 / 10
- Giftable
- Mint
- Excellent
- Very Good
- Good
- Honest Wear
- As Found
A team name in felt and thread
Before the luxury houses borrowed it, the team jacket was a small-town object, bought off a department store rail and lettered for a local side. This one keeps its original script, its mended collar and its 1950s cut. It is the source material the modern varsity jacket quotes.
Best for: Vintage Americana collectors; 1950s club jacket wardrobes
Condition notes
Age-consistent wear and mottling to the wool; darned repair at centre back below the collar; cuff tipping softened.
Assessed from photographs and descriptionReport dated 13 November 2026
Grades, ratings and commentary are given to the best of our ability, knowledge and experience, and condition remains partly a matter of personal perception. What we stand behind without qualification is authenticity, truthful description and provenance, to the best of our knowledge. How we grade
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A 1950s club jacket from Penney's, the department store label of J. C. Penney: heathered grey wool, the team name Chiefs written across the back in navy and red felt script, and a feathered chief's head on the chest. Made and styled in the West, as its label says.
The Piece
The back leads. Chiefs runs in a looping navy felt script outlined in red, finished with a long underline tail, appliquéd by hand-guided machine stitching onto the grey wool in the manner Japanese collectors call tataki. On the left chest, a red felt headdress and profile in navy make up the team emblem.
The cut is the boxy club jacket of the period: grey snaps down the front, two vertical welt pockets, a black rib collar tipped in red and gold, and black rib cuffs tipped in red. Inside, a grey lining carries the yellow Penney's label. The heathered wool shows its age honestly.
Club and team jackets like this were sold by American department stores through the 1950s for local teams, and they are now among the most collected vintage forms in Japan.
Details
- Maker: Penney's
- Era: 1950s (per description)
- Style: Club jacket, snap front, rib collar
- Shell: Wool
- Decoration: Felt appliqué Chiefs script to the back, chief's head patch to the chest
- Colour: Heather grey with navy, red and black
- Size: No size label; fits as a modern XL by measurement
- Shoulder: 53.5 cm (21.1 in)
- Chest width: 65 cm (25.6 in)
- Length: 73.5 cm (28.9 in)
- Sleeve: 65 cm (25.6 in)
Measured flat by hand; please allow a gentle margin of about 1 to 2 cm (0.5 in).
Condition
- Wear in keeping with its age: light marks and some mottling to the wool.
- A darned repair at the centre back, just below the collar, shown close up.
- Rib tipping at the cuffs is softened with use; every photograph is part of the description.
Condition grade B (very good, light wear) on the Japanese scale, with the repair noted; see Japanese condition ranks, explained.
Authenticity & Care
Checked and photographed in Japan before dispatch. Dry clean only, by a specialist in vintage wool; store folded or on a broad hanger.
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 you wish to know before you buy, and see our published policy.
Considered offers are welcome through Send an Offer, and each one is reviewed personally. More vintage Americana in our Amekaji collection and among recent arrivals.
Concierge
Looking for another 1950s club or award jacket, a particular team name or a smaller size? Our Hunting Salon™ locates it across Japan's private collector circles, then inspects, documents and delivers it to you. Begin a Hunting Salon™ request.
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