This is what the tiny pocket inside the pocket of your jeans is for

If you thought that tiny pocket on the front of your jeans was for the coins you never carry anymore, it's time to guess again.

If you try and say you have never questioned why there are so many seemingly pointless pockets on your jeans... I simply don’t believe you.

Many have been content believing they were designed to simply hold coins. It makes sense as it certainly works!

But the small pocket actually dates back to 1890 and were stitched into Levi's 'waist overall' jeans with a different purpose in mind.

Back then, they were commonly used for pocket watches and - outside of fancy dress or fashion statements - most people don’t tend to carry pocket watches with them anymore because thanks to technology, anything with a screen can basically tell you the time.

Strauss and J.W. Davis patented 'Improvement in Fastening Pocket Openings,' on May 20, 1873.

Levi Strauss & Co's very own historian, Tracey Panek, told Insider: "The oldest pair of waist overalls in the Levi Strauss & Co. Archives (from 1879) includes the watch pocket.

"Our 19th century overalls had a single back pocket on right side of the pant beneath the leather patch."

The small pocket actually dates back to 1890, and were stitched into Levi's 'waist overall' jeans with a specific purpose in mind. (Getty Stock Image)

It turns out that the tiny pocket is never found on suit trousers because a pocket watch would be part of the inside of a jacket for formal wear.

So really, the idea of having such a small compartment is pretty pointless... yet, there is a reason why it's still there.

Interestingly, it's actually due to sentiment with regards to WWII as to why they are still in existence.

Panek explained: "One interesting fact about the watch pocket is that during WWII the two corner rivets were removed as a way to conserve metal for the war effort."

"The rivets returned to the watch pocket after the war. It was riveted in the top two corners and included our recognizable arch design, called the Arcuate, stitched with a single needle sewing machine.

"The watch pocket was an original element of our blue jeans, like the rivets on our pockets, button fly, arched back pocket stitching and leather patch.

It turns out that the tiny pocket is never found on suit trousers because a pocket watch would be part of the inside of a jacket for formal wear. (Getty Stock Image)

"To preserve the integrity of the early design, Levi Strauss & Co. maintains the watch pocket."

On the Levi's website, she wrote: "This cinch-free blue jean with the uniform look of the Arcuate, a contrast to previous years when the single-needle application made each Arcuate design unique, was the blue jean of the future and you can still see it in our 501 jeans more than 70 years later.

"Levi’s emerged from World War II as fresh, modern and uniformly manufactured.

"And with a distribution that now spanned oceans, it was well on its way to becoming the world’s ubiquitous global garment that it is today."

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