Yet another unique Hermes Birkin bag sold for $2.86 million

A Hermes handbag formerly owned by Jane Birkin was sold for $2.86 million (2.45 million euros) at an auction in Abu Dhabi on Friday, following the record-setting sale of her first Birkin bag earlier this year, Sotheby's confirmed Tuesday.

The iconic design was originally created by Hermes in 1984 for the British singer and actress and has since become one of the most coveted fashion items worldwide. The very first prototype of the Birkin sold for 8.58 million euros ($10 million) at a Sothebys Paris auction in July, shattering previous price records for handbags.

The piece sold on Friday, a "Birkin Voyageur," was gifted to Birkin in 2003 and previously belonged to her. The final hammer price exceeded pre-auction estimates of $230,000-$430,000 by nearly six times.

Sotheby's commented, "Jane Birkin's handbag legacy continues to captivate collectors," noting that the bidding lasted 11 minutes among six collectors. The winning bid came from an anonymous phone buyer.

This handbag was one of four owned by Birkin, who often sold them to support charitable causes. Inside the bag, a handwritten French inscription from Birkin reads: "My Birkin bag, my globetrotting companion."

A third Hermes Birkin bag from Birkins collection is scheduled for auction on December 15 at the Hotel Drouot in Paris. The sale is being managed by her friend and biographer Gabrielle Crawford, with proceeds intended to support the future Jane Birkin Foundation.

Produced in limited quantities, the Birkin bag remains a symbol of exclusivity and is highly sought after by celebrities including the Kardashians, Jennifer Lopez, and Victoria Beckham.

For context, the most expensive fashion item ever sold at auction is a pair of ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in "The Wizard of Oz" (1939), which fetched $32.5 million in Dallas, Texas in 2024, according to Sotheby's.

Author: Benjamin Carter