V&A
Navy Wool Vinyl Donkey Jacket
1970s · 1970s · British
Production
mass-produced
Material
navy wool with vinyl
Culture
British
Movement
Hippie / Counterculture
Influences
British dock worker uniform · military field jacket construction
A sturdy navy wool donkey jacket featuring the characteristic boxy silhouette and functional construction typical of British workwear. The jacket displays contrasting olive green vinyl shoulder patches and collar reinforcements, designed for durability in manual labor. Four large buttons secure the front closure, with patch pockets positioned at hip level. The collar can be turned up for weather protection. The heavy wool construction provides warmth while the vinyl patches offer water resistance and abrasion protection at high-wear points. This utilitarian design represents the crossover of authentic workwear into mainstream fashion during the 1970s counterculture movement.
jacketregular fithip length
Connected To
Movement·Hippie / Counterculture
LINEAGEsame era · cross-category→ directed
Lineage: “British dock worker uniform”
Both garments channel the 1970s British working-class aesthetic that became hippie uniform, but from opposite ends of the cultural spectrum. The Fair Isle waistcoat represents the authentic article—traditional Shetland patterns knitted in earthy burgundy and cream that dock workers and fishermen actually wore—while the donkey jacket is the counterculture's romanticized adoption of laborer gear, complete with the telltale vinyl shoulder patches that kept rain off working backs.
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