What interests us is where it all started — and what happened to the tie in the decades that followed.

Ralph Lauren has been such a consistent part of American culture that it is easy to forget how many different periods and personalities the company has moved through. Today, collectors hunt down pieces from those various eras, sometimes paying extraordinary prices for the right grail.

For us, the ties from the 1990s through the very early 2000s are particularly interesting.

Many were made in Italy from beautiful silks, in deep purples, rich madders, paisleys and patterns that manage to be elegant without becoming boring or overly slick. They also have proportions we like. They make a slightly smaller knot and have enough width through the blade to sit comfortably against a substantial lapel.

That makes them especially good with the Tailors’ Keep house cut.

Our suits tend toward a wider lapel, a higher-waisted trouser and proportions that take some cues from an earlier era of tailoring. Put one of these old Ralph Lauren ties against that silhouette and things just seem to fall into place. The tie has presence without taking over the suit.

There is also something satisfying about the circle of it all.

An empire that began with a tie. Nearly sixty years later, we find ourselves digging through Ralph Lauren’s past and coming back to the same thing.

We’ve collected a selection of vintage Ralph Lauren ties from the ’90s and early 2000s, now available online and in the shop.