Bootcut, baggy, boyfriend or rather skinny-fit?

Always reinterpreted, the jeans always remain a classic.

It is impossible to imagine the here and now without it.

But as early as the 18th century it was part of everyday clothing among the bourgeois and working population of Genoa, the birthplace of jeans.

The Italian brand Diesel is now celebrating the creation of the world-famous trousers by recreating the oldest denim in the world. The reason for this was the first ever event “Genova Jeans”. At the five-day fair, everything revolved around the one item of clothing. A particularly exciting exhibit: the creation by Diesel, which is even wider than a boyfriend cut and shorter than ankle jeans. The fabric is deep blue with light threads running through it, aligned and adapted to the first known specimen.

The basis for the reproduction of the oldest denim was a crib figure by the artist Pasquale Navone (1746-1791). It depicts a man with jeans that are very close to the modern version of the garment. This makes it one of the oldest representations of a pair of jeans. In collaboration with costume historian Marzia Cataldi Gallo, the reproduction was made as truthful as possible. "She is very focused on checking everything precisely and scientifically," says Andrea Rosso, Diesel's sustainability officer and son of the founder, Renzo Rosso.

With the help of a microscope analysis, it was possible to find out, for example, that jeans at the time consisted of a mix of cotton and linen, which in turn influenced the color scheme.

Rosso describes the creative process and the value of traditional craftsmanship as follows: “It was made with an old loom, woven diagonally.

The jeans are of course blue, but have a slight white-yellow undertone.

In addition, the fabric is not stiff at all, rather soft and light. "

From work trousers to classic

The port city in northern Italy is not only the birthplace of jeans, but also their namesake. The term originated from the French form of Genoa, "Genes", which became "Jeans" in American colloquial language. As early as 1567, dock workers were using "Geanes fustian", a robust white or brown fabric made of Arab cotton for their work clothes and sailcloths. In the city of Nîmes in southern France, another robust fabric was produced in the 17th century, "Serge de Nîmes" (fabric from the city of Nîmes), and like its predecessor from the Italian port city, it was dyed with indigo blue. Levi Strauss, who was born in Upper Franconia and emigrated to the USA in 1847, made the material world-famous. He imported it to San Francisco, where it was used for the trousers of the gold diggers.In 1873, Strauss patented jeans. The shortened form “Denim” from “Serge de Nîmes” was born.

“Our goal for the future is that we at Diesel assume the greatest possible ecological and social responsibility,” says Andrea Rosso.

Today's jeans production is mostly unsustainable due to the high water consumption and the use of toxic chemicals in cotton cultivation and production.

“Genova Jeans” wants to change that.

And “Sustainability Ambassador” Rosso also talks a lot about responsible and environmentally conscious work.

"I'm happy to say that Diesel was the first to reproduce the oldest fabric in jeans," he says, "the world-famous trousers we all wear today."