‘Object of a lifetime': The first original Birkin bag from 1984 to be auctioned in July

Straits Times

19-06-2025

'Object of a lifetime': The first original Birkin bag from 1984 to be auctioned in July
NEW YORK – It is nearly impossible to walk inside an Hermes store and come home with a new Birkin bag. But if you wanted to get your hands on the original Birkin bag – the prototype made for British-French actress-singer Jane Birkin – it is going up for auction.
It will be sold as part of a Paris Fashion Icons sale, which Sotheby's is holding on July 10. Prior to that, it will be on view at Sotheby's Galleries in Paris from July 3 to 9.
There is no public estimate for how much the bag might fetch.
'At this stage, we will communicate it privately to potential bidders,' said Ms Morgane Halimi, global head of handbags and fashion for Sotheby's.
'Obviously, it is a one-of-a-kind piece, completely apart from any other handbag or any other Birkin. We are breaking records with Birkin bags on a regular basis at auction. We foresee it to be as unique as the Diana jumper or a worn jersey from the NBA. It has value because of what it is and what has happened because of that bag.'
The story behind the bag has become something of a fashion legend.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
This is the original bag made in 1984 for Jane Birkin, the late icon of French cinema. The story behind the bag has become something of a fashion legend.
She was on an Air France flight to London from Paris and had been upgraded to first class. The basket bag she carried, her signature for decades, was in poor shape. As she boarded the plane, the contents started to spill out: wallet, keys, business cards, diapers, glasses.
Her seatmate happened to be Mr Jean-Louis Dumas, then chief executive of Hermes, the French luxury house founded by Thierry Hermes in 1837.
Birkin and Mr Dumas talked about how she needed a bag that could fit all of her necessities, and they began to sketch out an idea on an airsickness bag. Their concept had two handles like a tote, and somewhat resembled a shrunken version of the Haut a Courroies luggage that Hermes made.
Her custom bag became the prototype of the Birkin, which was named after her.
The bag became desirable partly for its rarity.
'There are a limited number of them created each year,' Ms Halimi said. 'There is the craftsmanship: You can repair, restore and cherish it. And then, in a world of fast fashion and seasonal trends, it's not going to be out of style any time soon. If you are offered one to buy at Hermes, you feel like part of this small club.'
The Birkin has become a fixture in pop culture since its inception, namechecked in many song lyrics. It also appeared as a plot line in a 2001 episode of romantic comedy series Sex And The City (1998 to 2004) that included the memorable line: 'It's not a bag, it's a Birkin.'
This original bag is different in several ways from the commercially available Birkins. Its size is unique, with a height of just under 36cm and a depth of just under 41cm; its strap is not removable; the hardware is made of brass; the inner zipper is from a different manufacturer; and the studs on the bottom are a different shape.
And one more detail: a nail clipper that Birkin had hung on the outside of the bag is included.
She was known for not being precious with her Birkins. She covered some in stickers for political causes and frequently hung trinkets off them.
On social media, fans have taken to posting their own charm-laden bags or phones, which some call 'Birkinifying'.
Over the past year, imitations – or homages – of the bag have received attention online, including the most recent Boatkin, a new style that marries the design of the Birkin and the canvas material of American retail company L.L. Bean's Boat And Tote.
But the original Birkin has remained a subject of intense fascination. It was exhibited at New York's Museum of Modern Art as part of the show Items: Is Fashion Modern?, which ran from 2017 to 2018, and again in 2020 at London's Victoria And Albert Museum as part of the exhibition Bags Inside Out.
Sotheby's displayed it in the company's Paris galleries in October 2024, and at Sotheby's Maison, Hong Kong in April 2025 . Thousands of people came to see the bag at the Sotheby's showings, Ms Halimi said.
Jane Birkin, who died in July 2023 at the age of 76, owned five Birkin bags over the course of her life, one of which sold for around US$160,000 (S$205,000) in a 2021 auction.
Actress Jane Birkin's original Hermes Birkin on display at Sotheby's auction house in New York, US, on June 6.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
This prototype, which has the added value of being the original, was sold by Birkin at a charity auction for Aids in October 1994. It went to auction again in May 2000, at Poulain-Le Fur, and was purchased by Ms Catherine Benier, a prominent collector and the owner of the Les 3 Marches de Catherine B vintage shop in Paris, for an undisclosed price.
'Acquiring the first Birkin from Hermes was a dream of mine as a collector,' Ms Benier wrote in an e-mail.
She said she had read about the 1994 auction but did not participate, and was determined to win the 2000 auction when she heard about it in advance.
'I got the bag after fierce bidding between myself and other foreign bidders. It's the jewel in my collection.'
The Birkin has become a fixture in pop culture since its inception, namechecked in many song lyrics.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Ms Benier kept the bag stored, but the crowds who visited it in 2024 influenced her decision to sell.
'A collection is only worth it if it's shared,' she wrote.
She expects the bag to set records, but would not specify a desired number.
'Twenty-five years ago when I acquired it, it was already the most expensive bag in the world,' she wrote. 'All these elements fuel the legend of the first Birkin bag, so certainly a price exists, but what is it? This bag is the object of a lifetime, it's a legend, an icon. Does a legend have a price? Certainly.' NYTIMES
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