© The Indian Express (P) Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
The first-ever Birkin handbag sold for a whopping 8.6 million euros ($10.1 million) on Thursday, becoming the second most expensive fashion item ever sold at an auction (after the ruby red slippers from The Wizard of Oz, which sold for $32.5 million in 2024).
Named after the late actor Jane Birkin, for whom French fashion houses Hermès created it, the auctioneer called accessory the “the most famous bag of all time”.
(The Birkin bag was notably featured in the 2011 Hindi film Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. The film contained several references to its hefty price tag.)
Hermès exclusively commissioned the bag for Birkin in 1984, branding it with her initials J.B. on the front flap, below the lock. The subsequent commercialised version of Birkin’s bag went on to become one of the world’s most exclusive luxury items, extravagantly priced and with a years-long waiting list.
The bag was born out of an encounter between Birkin and Jean-Louis Dumas, then the head of Hermès, on a flight. Birkin splilt some of her things on the cabin floor, and asked Dumas why Hermès didn’t make a bigger handbag. Dumas sketched a design on an aeroplane vomit bag and soon, sent Birkin her specially-made bag.
“There is no doubt that the Original Birkin bag is a true one-of-a-kind… It is incredible to think that a bag initially designed by Hermès as a practical accessory… has become the most desirable bag in history,” said Morgane Halimi, Sotheby’s head of handbags and fashion.
Sotheby’s said that several design elements on the handcrafted all-black leather prototype set it apart from Birkins that followed. For one, this was the only Birkin with a non-removable shoulder strap — fitting for the busy life and practicality of the singer, actor, social activist and mother. The bag that Hermès handmade for Birkin also has gilded brass hardware, bottom studs and other features that differ from commercial models.
Birkin’s casual, breezy style in the 1960s and early 1970s — long hair with bangs, jeans paired with white tops, knit minidresses and basket bags — still epitomises the height of French chic for many.
Birkin kept the prototype for nearly a decade before auctioning it for an AIDS charity in 1994. It was auctioned again in 2000 and has since been in private hands. Sotheby’s said.
“Its presence spans the worlds of music, film, television and the arts” and that “It is a red-carpet staple, a fashion magazine mainstay, and a coveted piece in the wardrobes of celebrities, artists and stylists.”
