Vintage pair of Levis, 125 years old, go for close to $100,000
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}This undated photo provided by Daniel Buck Auctions, of Lisbon Falls, Maine, shows a portion of a pair of 125-year-old Levi Strauss & Co., denim blue jeans that sold for nearly $100,000 this month. The buyer was from Asia. (AP)
The vintage look just got a whole lot more expensive. A buyer in Southeast Asia has purchased a pair of 125-year-old Levis for almost $100,000.
And you thought your jeans cost a pretty penny.
The jeans, originally bought in 1893 by Solomon Warner, a storekeeper in the Arizona Territory, have a drastically different look than today’s Levis. Warner’s jeans had but a single rear pocket, a button fly and no belt loops -- remember, men favored a good set of suspenders back in the day.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The denims, size 44 with a 36-inch inseam, suggest that Warner was no small man.
Warner, it turns out, had a colorful history that had nothing to do with his jeans. He established one of the first stores selling American dry goods in Tucson, and survived being shot by Apaches in 1870.
The jeans were in good condition when they were purchased earlier this month because Warner had only worn them a few times before becoming ill.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The identity of the buyer and the exact amount of the sale have remained under wraps, because the Levis were sold through a private sale and not by way of an auction.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.