New in this forum. Help needed with Hercules Sears Jacket

[rodilla]

Hello friends.
I have been for a long time reading this forum with great interest. Finally I have decided to post here. Sorry for my english.
I always have loved vintage trends, specially jackets.
I am from Madrid, Spain. Here there are a lot of places and little shops where is available picking this garments for a reasonable price. Only is needed a bit of patience and surely you "will see the glass hidden in the grass" (Morrissey dixit).

Recently I bought an old jacket in a friend´s shop. He usually buys clothes from USA by the weight and often among tons of anodyne clothes comes in a little marvel.
The jacket I want to show you is branded HERCULES TOP QUALITY, with a label that I have not ever seen before. I am sure it is quite old.
It was no cheap, but I love its colour and leather wear, some people calls it patina.
Please help me to identify how old this jacket could be. Any help will be wellcome.
What kind of leather is the jacket made? May be horsehide?. There is not indication of this.
The zippers are marked crown and there is a rare inner collar.
Here I post several pictures.
Thank you and I hope you like the jacket
Juan Carlos

 

[ButteMT61]

Excellent jacket! Thanks for posting the pics. That is a great catch. I've been admiring some of these old Sears jackets myself. Wish I could find one my size...

 

[fedoralover]

Thats a real beauty. I have 2 Sears vintage jackets and have looked at dozens if not hundreds on ebay and have never seen a label like that. It would probably be safe to say it's either 40s or 50s. From what I can see of the leather it's either horsehide or cowhide. I've noticed though that Sears always liked to advertise whether it was horsehide or not and quite often would put "genuine horsehide" on the label or on a separate tag. But given the age of yours it could have come off. Either way it has nice grain and patina. It's a great jacket.

fedoralover

 

[Aether]

Welcome to the forum Juan Carlos,

Beautiful jacket you have there and it fits you very well too. Great buy!

Nick

 

[too much coffee]

Hello Juan Carlos and Welcome to the Lounge;

Great looking jacket and a good fit on you. I agree with fedoralover.......probably 40s - 50s. The patina on your jacket is what a lot of guys wait years to achieve on their jackets and only comes with age and honest wear. Same with the pronounced grain on your jacket. You have a real classic jacket there my friend.

Don't EVER let it out of your sight!

Thank you for sharing the excellent pictures also.

Regards,
coffee

P.S.: What is the figure inside the "Hercules" label? Is it a bullfighter with a cape? Or a Vaquero with a saddle or something else. If it's a bullfighter, that might be an indication your jacket might be steerhide(cowhide)"? Just a stab in the dark.

 

[dhermann1]

Wait . . . you wouldn't happen to be the king of Spain, would you???

Nice nice jacket. Welcome to the Lounge.

 

[crimsonofsam]

Nice find! Looks like horsehide to me.

 

[garzo]

Hello Juan Carlos and Welcome to the Lounge;

Great looking jacket and a good fit on you. I agree with fedoralover.......probably 40s - 50s. The patina on your jacket is what a lot of guys wait years to achieve on their jackets and only comes with age and honest wear. Same with the pronounced grain on your jacket. You have a real classic jacket there my friend.

Don't EVER let it out of your sight!

Thank you for sharing the excellent pictures also.

Regards,
coffee

P.S.: What is the figure inside the "Hercules" label? Is it a bullfighter with a cape? Or a Vaquero with a saddle or something else. If it's a bullfighter, that might be an indication your jacket might be steerhide(cowhide)"? Just a stab in the dark.

The figure on the label looks like none other than old Hercules himself!

http://www.bodenheimer.com/referenceimages/farneseherculesglycon.jpg

 

[rodilla]

Thanks you for your answers, my friends.

The figure that appears in the label is HERCULES, not a bullfighter (I know them well here in Spain ha ha ha ha). I have been looking for this kind of label and it seems to be from 30s. If so, the jacket would be older than I believed. It matches with the style of the jacket, called "half belt" and very popular in thay years.
Please look at this link

http://blog.artifactbags.com/denim-vintageclothing/1930s-hercules-horsehide-jacket

In any case, really a good looking jacket with a wonderful grain.

Thanks to all again

 

[rodilla]

By the way. The jacket leather is a bit stiff and heavy, but not too thick.
I think it must be horsehide ... but really don´t know

 

[Seb Lucas]

Really nice half-belt in great condition. 1950's I think. Get a high quality leather dressing on it. Pecards is my favourite. There's plenty of info on leather dressing here. Welcome.

 

[rodilla]

Thank you Seb for the advice. I have already used bickmore 4.

Really nice half-belt in great condition. 1950's I think. Get a high quality leather dressing on it. Pecards is my favourite. There's plenty of info on leather dressing here. Welcome.

 

[Deleted member 16736]

This jacket is from the 30's and the leather is almost certainly horsehide. I've seen two other 30's Hercules jackets that were quite similar (with the large bottom band in front and side straps at bottom). The knife pleats, throat latch and button cuffs are a dead-giveaway for the 30's. You have an amazing find, and it's a perfect fit! At auction, this jacket is probably worth over $1000, since the two other 30's Hercules of a similar style both sold above $1500. Don't let it "wander off."

 

[Edward]

Looks like it could conceivably be the jacket on which the Aero 30s Halfbelt is based. Very, very nice find.

 

[rodilla]

Thank you for the info Joel¡¡¡
I will preserve the jacket as it deserves.
I suspected that it was quite old but not so valuable [huh][huh][huh]

This jacket is from the 30's and the leather is almost certainly horsehide. I've seen two other 30's Hercules jackets that were quite similar (with the large bottom band in front and side straps at bottom). The knife pleats, throat latch and button cuffs are a dead-giveaway for the 30's. You have an amazing find, and it's a perfect fit! At auction, this jacket is probably worth over $1000, since the two other 30's Hercules of a similar style both sold above $1500. Don't let it "wander off."

 

[garzo]

Yes, beautiful jacket. A fantastic find indeed.

 

[Deleted member 16736]

Here's a link to a story about one of these jackets that sold recently for over $1500. To be honest, yours is nicer and possibly more rare.

http://www.vintageworkwear.com/2011/10/1930s-hercules-cossack-style-belt-back.html

Also, you'll notice that the label is a match!

 

[rodilla]

Yes Joel It´s almost the same jacket.
I assure you I have not paid that amount of money
Thanks again

Here's a link to a story about one of these jackets that sold recently for over $1500. To be honest, yours is nicer and possibly more rare.

http://www.vintageworkwear.com/2011/10/1930s-hercules-cossack-style-belt-back.html

Also, you'll notice that the label is a match!

 

[Deleted member 16736]

How tall are you? Maybe I'll bid!

 

[Forrest]

That is the most AWESOME Sears Hercules jacket I have ever seen! Love the corduroy under the collar.