A luxury Hermes handbag fetched a jaw-dropping $380,000, shattering the world auction record in Hong Kong on Wednesday, Christie’s said. The auction house didn’t identify the buyer of the matte white “Himalaya” crocodile skin Hermes Birkin bag. .
The handbag was produced in 2014 and has 18 karat gold buckles and strap loops encrusted with 205 diamonds. It fetched 2.94 million Hong Kong dollars ($380,000), which Christie’s says is a record for any handbag sold at auction. .
The price flew past the presale estimate of HK 1.5 million-2 million ($193,000-$258,000) during 10 to 15 minutes of intense bidding in the auction room and from phone and online buyers, Christie’s spokeswoman Gigi Ho said. .
The price surpasses the record set a year ago when Christie’s auctioned a similar Birkin bag for $300,000. It had identical specifications but was produced in 2008.
