“It was the world record price for any handbag sold at auction”, Bingle Lee, a Hong Kong-based spokesman for Christie’s, told AFP.
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A diamond-encrusted Hermes Birkin bag has sold at auction in Hong Kong for more than HK$2.33 million, making it the most expensive handbag ever sold. The white purse features white gold and diamond hardware and is made of white crocodile skin.
The rare Himalaya Niloticus Crocodile Diamond Birkin 30 went to an unknown phone bidder late Monday for HK$2.32 million ($298,655), beating a pre-sale estimate of $2 million, the auction house Christie’s said.
The luxe crocodile print bag features 245 diamonds and an 18-carat white gold clasp features.
In a press release, Christie’s said it is believed that Hermes only produces one or two Diamond Himalayas each year.
Jane Birkin, herself asked Hermes to remove her name from the handbag when she discovered the cruel methods involved in its making.
The 10-year old bag was made from rare Himalayan crocodile skin. It breaks the previous record-holder, a $222,000 fuchsia diamond-studded Hermes Birkin, according to CNN.
Monday’s sale breaks the all-time record for any handbag sold at auction, shattering the previous record of $222,000 paid for a maroon Birkin encrusted with diamonds past year.
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The Birkin bag also was famously seen in a Sex and the City episode, where Samantha – played by Kim Cattrall – lusted after her red Birkin.
