PARIS — Hermès is the height of luxury and a simple purse drawn on an air sickness bag has earned millions of dollars at a Paris auction.
The first Birkin bag, which was the start of the iconic line of purses, broke a record with its $8.2 million sale during the auction, The Associated Press reported.
It was sold to a private collector in Japan after 10 minutes of bidding, CNN reported.
The previous record was held by a White Himalaya Niloticus Crocodile Diamond Retourne Kelly 28, which sold for $513,040.
The bidding for the Birkin started higher than that record, at $1.17 million.
The purse was designed for Jane Birkin and named after the late actress and singer. Her initials, J.B., were on the front flap. A year after its 1984 commissioning, it was finished and delivered to its namesake, the AP reported.
It evolved into one of the most sought-after and exclusive purses, with a high price and even higher waitlist that can last for years.
The average price is between $10,000 and $60,000 per bag, according to Forbes. The most expensive one was worth $2 million and had 2,712 diamonds on it..
You must be invited by a Hermès sales associate for an opportunity to buy one and that invitation will come only after someone has spent thousands of dollars on other Hermès merchandise.
When you get an invite, you have to choose from what is available; you can’t ask for a specific bag, Forbes said.
The bag came after Birkin and the head of Hermès, Jean-Louis Dumas, were on a flight and she dropped items on the plane’s floor. She asked Dumas why the company didn’t make a bigger bag and sketched what she would like on an air-sickness bag. He made one for her and then asked if he could use her name to market the design.
The one sold at auction has a few differences from the ones that followed it. It had a non-removable shoulder strap, an attached nail clipper, gilded brass hardware, bottom studs and other features, the AP reported.
Birkin kept her bag for a decade before selling it for an AIDS charity in 1994. It was auctioned again in 2000, Forbes reported.
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