How Jane Birkin’s First Hermès Purse Broke Records at $10.1M
I guess I should walk you through why Jane Birkin’s very first Hermès Birkin bag has everyone’s heads spinning—even if you *think* you already know the story. In a headline-making July 10 Sotheby’s Paris auction, this black leather gem fetched an astonishing $10.1 million, establishing itself as the most expensive handbag ever sold. If you aren’t furiously Googling “Birkin bag” by now, you probably will be soon.
First things first: this wasn’t just any handbag. In the early ’80s, Hermès CEO Jean-Louis Dumas found himself seated next to Birkin on a Paris-to-London flight. Spotting her wicker basket filled with personal items, he casually quipped that his workshops could build her a carryall more suited to a screen legend. She complained about standard purses being too tiny, he sketched a prototype on an air sickness bag, and voilà—the Birkin bag was born. According to Sotheby’s, this exact prototype still bears Birkin’s initials stamped on the front, plus her trusty nail clippers dangling from one strap. Hard to miss those real-life wear marks; they’re the ultimate authenticity proof, or so the auction catalog bragged.
Nine collectors from around the globe duked it out over phone, online, and in person. An anonymous Japanese bidder pushed the price from $7.2 million to $7.6 million, then $7.9 million—finally sealing the deal at $10.1 million. Sotheby’s official press release confirms the buyer’s origins and bidding timeline, while E! Online’s coverage highlights the tension of the ten-minute fight. Quite the drama for a purse, right?
You probably didn’t realize that this special piece has design traits missing from today’s mass-produced Birkins. It features a fixed shoulder strap (no extra hardware to fiddle with), gilded brass fittings, and smaller bottom studs. Dimensions are quirky too: it’s the height and width of a Birkin 35 but the depth of a Birkin 40, turning it into the unicorn of handbags. Birkin herself used it daily for ten years, even after Hermès gifted her four more custom models. Then in 1994, she auctioned it off for charity, only for it to change hands again in 2000 when collector Christine B. snagged it. Christine told Sotheby’s, “I’ve loved being its steward for 25 years, reminding the world why the Birkin is iconic.”
Before you scroll away, yes—Jane Birkin passed in 2023 at age 76, but this bag’s tale is far from over. With record-shattering bids and provenance that reads like a Hollywood script, this auction is just the latest chapter. Glad I could clear that up for you—now you finally understand why people go bananas over what appears to be “just a purse.” Hopefully that wasn’t too complicated.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and E! Online (eonline.com), Sotheby’s auction catalog and press release
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
