ABU DHABI – A historic Hermès handbag previously owned by the late British-French icon Jane Birkin fetched an astonishing $2.86 million (€2.45 million) at a Sotheby’s auction in Abu Dhabi last Friday. The sale marks another milestone in the remarkable market performance of Birkin’s personal collection, following the record-shattering €8.58 million ($10 million) achieved by her first prototype bag in Paris just months earlier.
The auctioned item, a ‘Birkin Voyageur’ model gifted to Birkin in 2003, dramatically exceeded pre-sale estimates of $230,000-$430,000. The final bid represented approximately six times the high estimate after an intense 11-minute bidding war among six collectors. The successful buyer, who participated via telephone, has chosen to remain anonymous.
This particular bag features a handwritten inscription in French from Birkin herself: ‘My Birkin bag, my globetrotting companion.’ It was one of four bags the actress and singer regularly sold to support charitable causes during her lifetime. The bag’s provenance and personal connection to the style icon contributed significantly to its extraordinary valuation.
The Hermès Birkin bag, initially created for Birkin in 1984, has evolved into one of fashion’s most coveted status symbols. Produced in extremely limited quantities, these bags maintain an aura of exclusivity and have been embraced by celebrities including the Kardashians, Jennifer Lopez, and Victoria Beckham.
Another Birkin-owned Hermès bag is scheduled for auction on December 15th at Paris’s Hôtel Drouot. This sale, managed by Birkin’s friend and biographer Gabrielle Crawford, will benefit the future Jane Birkin Foundation. According to Sotheby’s, the most expensive fashion item ever sold at auction remains the ruby slippers from ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ which commanded $32.5 million in 2024.