Jane Birkin's Original Hermès Bag Fetches Record $10.1 Million At Auction
A private collector from Japan secured the iconic black leather bag after a 10-minute bidding war involving nine participants, with the hammer price reaching 7 million euros before fees.
The bag, a 1985 prototype, was born from a chance encounter in the early 1980s when Birkin sat next to Hermès executive Jean-Louis Dumas on a Paris-to-London flight. Frustrated with the small handbags of the era, Birkin, traveling with her daughter Charlotte, sketched her ideal tote on an airplane sick bag, envisioning a spacious, structured bag with two handles.
Hermès delivered the custom piece in 1985, branding it with her initials, J.B., on the front flap.
'There is no doubt that the Original Birkin bag is a true one-of-a-kind — a singular piece of fashion history that has grown into a pop culture phenomenon that signals luxury in the most refined way possible,' said Morgane Halimi, Sotheby's global head of handbags and fashion.
The auction, initially planned as an online-only event, was upgraded to a live event in Sotheby's Paris galleries due to intense client interest. Bidding started at 1 million euros, escalating rapidly past 4 million euros to gasps and applause from onlookers. The final bids climbed from 6.2 million to 7 million euros, surpassing the previous handbag auction record of $513,040 for a Hermès Kelly bag in 2021.
Only one fashion item, a pair of ruby red slippers from 'The Wizard of Oz,' which sold for $32.5 million in 2024, has fetched a higher price at auction, according to Sotheby's.
The prototype differs from modern Birkins, which come in standard sizes, such as the Birkin 35 or 40, and feature colorful leathers or diamond-encrusted hardware. The original has the width and height of a Birkin 35 but the depth of a Birkin 40, with gilded brass hardware, fully closed metal rings near the clasp, smaller bottom studs, and an interior zipper from a vendor Hermès no longer uses. Unique to this bag is its non-removable shoulder strap, which features a nail clipper attached to it, reflecting Birkin's practical style.
Residue from stickers, charms, and beads she added also marks the bag, embodying her casual aesthetic of jeans and white tees that inspired the social media 'Jane Birkin-ify' trend.
'It was an everyday bag for her. Jane Birkin had a fairly charmed life in a lot of ways, and one of them was to get to casually own the most famous bag in the world that was named after her,' said Marisa Meltzer, author of the forthcoming book 'It Girl: The Life and Legacy of Jane Birkin.'
Meltzer said that Birkin, who died in 2023 at the age of 76, often joked about the bag's fame.
'She'd joke that people would say, 'Birkin like the bag?' She'd say, 'Yes, and the bag is going to sing now,'' Meltzer recalled, per The Wall Street Journal.
Birkin kept the prototype for nearly a decade before auctioning it in 1994 to support Association Solidarité Sida, a French AIDS charity. It was sold again in 2000 to collector Catherine Benier, who owned it until this auction.
'The price is the price of the Hermès story,' Benier told journalists, adding that the bag 'has all the attributes of a star.'
Since its creation, the Birkin has become a cultural icon, referenced in rap lyrics, 'Sex and the City,' and seen on celebrities, with some styles commanding six-figure prices and years-long waiting lists.
'The Birkin has evolved from a practical accessory to become a timeless cultural icon,' Sotheby's said, noting its prominence in music, film, and fashion.
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