Certainly in the UK the 'cafe racer' as we know it is a sixties thing, though they have their origin in the one-piece riding suits of the fifties. I have seen mandarin collars on jackets as early as 30s, though - typically German bike jackets and halfbelts.
If you think about it this 30s Peter's has a mandarin collar.
It is just in hiding when the jacket is open...
Same with the Leather Togs which is also a 30s design:
The center zip mandarin collar jacket might have become mainstream in the 50s with the J-100 and similar jackets, but it started on cross zips long before that.
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