The Birkin Bag That Started It All Heads to Auction

If you had to keep just one object to tell the story of the last 40 years of fashion, it could fit in one hand — or on one arm, worn nonchalantly like its original muse. It’s not a bag, it’s the bag. Created following a now mythical Paris-London flight, the very first Birkin bag imagined by Jean-Louis Dumas (former president of Hermès) for Jane Birkin in 1984 will be auctioned by Sotheby’s at its first “Fashion Icons” sale in Paris on July 10.

More than an accessory, this prototype is a relic. A unique piece with the patina of an icon’s life. Marked with her initials “J.B.”, it features an unexpected detail: nail clippers suspended from a chain. It has to be said that Jane Birkin has never been one to overdo luxury. It was precisely this contrast that forged the Birkin legend. A bag born of chance, from the charming disorder of an airline flight, which became the most coveted model in the history of leather goods.

Well Worn

Before crocodile skin, diamond inlays and endless waiting lists, there was this model. The original Birkin differs from those subsequently marketed. It has the width and height of a Birkin 35 with the depth of a Birkin 40, closed metal rings as on the house’s high strap model, gold-plated brass details that would later be replaced by gold, rose gold, palladium or ruthenium jewelry. But also a shoulder strap sewn in one piece (which would never be the case again) and a “vintage zipper.” Each detail recounts a moment of transition between bespoke craftsmanship and standardized luxury goods.

This bag was well worn by Jane Birkin. The singer and actress couldn’t stand bags that were too small, and once carried around a bag she didn’t think suited her lifestyle. That is, until its contents – diapers, cigarettes, glasses, notebooks – were scattered all over the CEO of Hermès, who happened to be sitting next to her on the plane. He asked her to draw her ideal bag… on a sickness bag. The rest is history.

This famous Birkin is not just a prototype, it’s ground zero of contemporary luxury fantasy. The skillful blend of rarity, storytelling and heritage that made the myth of the French label. Hermès produces only a limited number each year, sold only to the most loyal (or patient) customers. Obtaining a Birkin is often an initiation process. It’s hardly surprising, then, that this very first model should be the object of much envy. It has already been sold twice. The first, by Jane herself, in aid of Solidarité Sida in 1994. Then again in 2000, when it joined the private collection of Catherine Benier, founder of vintage boutique Les 3 Marches in Paris.

A Fashion Unicorn

Morgane Halimi, head of fashion collections at Sotheby’s, believes that it is “rare […] for an object to transcend trends and become a legend”: “Jane Birkin’s original Birkin bag is one of those. A true unicorn in the world of fashion and accessories, this iconic handbag stands side by side with other exceptional items of equally dazzling provenance – such as Princess Diana’s symbolic black sheep sweater and Freddie Mercury’s crown and cape. Both set exceptional benchmarks for items of their kind. Like them, the original Birkin has the potential to redefine records, but above all, our priority is to ensure that it finds a new home worthy of its iconic status and legendary history.” The bag will be on display at Sotheby’s in New York from June 6 to 12, then on view in Paris on rue du Faubourg St Honoré from July 3 to 9. It will then be auctioned on the 10th, alongside other iconic fashion items from famous couture shows by Alexander McQueen, Christian Dior, John Galliano, Thierry Mugler and Azzedine Alaïa.

The auction house has not yet given an estimated price. However, precedents such as the Birkin Himalaya sold for $513,000 in Hong Kong in 2017. The original Birkin, with its strong history and provenance, could lay claim to this record. All the more so as the object today transcends its status as an accessory: exhibited at MoMA in New York and the V&A Museum in London, it now belongs to the pantheon of global visual culture. Jane Birkin, who died in 2023, sometimes joked that she might be remembered not for her films or Je t’aime… moi non plus, but for this bag. What she didn’t know was that the fashion world hadn’t simply adopted the Birkin: it had sanctified it.

Originally published in Vanity Fair France