Few things are likely to link French emperors, A-list actors, grunge icons and dads on the nursery run – least of all a top originally used to identify people on sinking boats. Nonetheless, attracting wearers as diverse as these has been one of the Breton top’s most notable achievements.

Once the exclusive preserve of sailors, for the past 150 years or so it has given seafarers and landlubbers alike a dose of Gallic cool, making it an enduring menswear icon that’s more than worth its salt.

Listed by the Museum of Modern Art as one of 111 classic garments that everybody should own, the Breton top is a modern-day wardrobe essential that is just at home worn as part of a casual look as it is under a double-breasted suit. But with many variations available today and an interesting history to boot, there are plenty of questions to ask before you buy your own.

Where Did The Breton Top Come From?

The Breton top’s origins date back to 1858, and the Act of France, when the French navy introduced a white cotton pullover with indigo horizontal stripes as its official uniform. It was practical – in that it was easy to spot if anyone fell overboard, and the wide ‘boat’ neckline made it easier to peel off and wave for help – but it also carried a message; its 21 bars symbolised each of Napoleon’s naval victories over the English.

Pablo Picasso

The Breton top sailed into civilian life in the 1920s, thanks to American socialites Gerald and Sara Murphy, who invented the ‘summer season’ on the Cote d’Azur. In 1923, Gerald returned from a trip to Marseille with a bunch of the shirts from a local atelier, and soon the Murphys and their A-list guests – including The Great Gatsby writer F. Scott Fitzgerald and Spanish painter Pablo Picasso – were all sporting them by the pool.

James Dean

Designer Coco Chanel later incorporated the stripes into her nautical-inspired collections, and the Breton went on to lend a little Riviera-inspired nonchalance to everyone from James Dean and Andy Warhol to Kurt Cobain and Jean-Paul Gaultier (who also showcased it on his Le Male fragrance bottle). As Luc Lesencal, chief executive of modern Breton brand Saint James, says: “The Breton is beyond fashion. It’s a timeless classic.”