Another Birkin bag sold for $2.86 million

A third bag to go under the hammer in Paris on December 15

PARIS:

The market for Hermes Birkin bags continued its extraordinary ascent this week, with a second handbag once owned by Jane Birkin selling for $2.86 million in Abu Dhabi, just as the original 1984 prototype of the iconic design was publicly unveiled in Tokyo following its record €8.6 million sale earlier this year.

The Abu Dhabi auction, confirmed by Sotheby's, comes only months after the prototype Birkin was purchased at a Paris sale by Japanese luxury reseller Valuence Japan for approximately $10 million — the highest price ever paid for a handbag.

Hermes created the design in 1984 after Jane Birkin found herself seated beside then-Hermes executive Jean-Louis Dumas on a flight. Frustrated by the lack of a practical yet stylish handbag, she described her needs to Dumas, who sketched the concept on the spot.

The resulting prototype included space for a baby bottle and other functional features, becoming the foundation for what would evolve into one of fashion's most coveted status symbols. Birkin herself auctioned the prototype in 1994 to raise funds for French AIDS charity Sidaction.

Against this backdrop of surging collector interest, the Abu Dhabi sale underscored the Birkin's persistent appeal. The bag sold there — a 'Birkin Voyageur' gifted to Birkin in 2003 — reached a final price roughly six times higher than the pre-sale estimate of $230,000-$430,000.

The newly sold bag was one of four owned by the late singer and actor. "Jane Birkin's handbag legacy continues to captivate collectors," Sotheby's said in a statement, noting an 11-minute contest among six bidders. The winning buyer participated by phone and has not been identified. This particular item carries a handwritten message in French from Birkin herself: "My Birkin bag, my globetrotting companion."

The actor frequently auctioned her Birkins to support charitable causes. Produced in extremely limited quantities, Hermes' modern Birkins have retained their aura of exclusivity and remain favourites of collectors and celebrities alike, including the Kardashians, Jennifer Lopez and Victoria Beckham.

Even with such high prices, they still fall short of the most expensive fashion item ever sold at auction: the ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz, which fetched $32.5 million in Dallas in 2024, according to Sotheby's.