So, who bought the original Birkin? Amid rumors and chaos, here's what happened at last Friday's Sotheby's auction

At first, rumors said Kim Kardashian would buy it, then that the new Mrs. Bezos would go to any lengths to get her hands on it. In the end, though, the truth came out: on July 10, during the Fashion Icons Auction at Sotheby’s in Paris, the very first Birkin in history—the original prototype made for Jane Birkin herself—was sold for €8.6 million to Valuence Japan, the Japanese company behind luxury buyers Allu and Nanboya. A historic result, as it officially became the most expensive handbag ever sold at auction and the second highest-selling fashion item globally (after Dorothy’s original ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz). Bidding started at one million euros, but within ten minutes, nine collectors competed via room, phone, and online; Maiko Ichikawa, head of Sotheby’s Japan, closed the deal over the phone with a final offer that silenced the room and set a new world record. Those expecting the bag to be immediately resold will be disappointed: Valuence Japan has already made it clear the purchase is not speculative. «For us, it is a cultural asset that we want to make accessible to a wide audience,» explained Shinsuke Sakimoto, CEO of the group, to Fashionsnap. «The message of freedom and originality embodied by Jane Birkin is deeply tied to our group’s values. We hope this bag can become a symbol of empowerment, diversity, and confidence.»

What makes this bag unique is not just its name, but the authenticity of the story it carries with it (and culturally speaking, it was the first accessory truly worthy of the label of an it-bag). As reported by CNN, Jane Birkin used it daily for nearly a decade, between 1985 and 1994, before donating it to a charity auction for Solidarité Sida. It was sold again in 2000 and kept for over twenty years by private collector Catherine B., who said she relived all the adrenaline of her original bidding battle at the moment of this sale. The original Birkin hadn’t been on the market for twenty-five years: its return was previewed last autumn with an exhibition in Paris, followed by a series of stops in Hong Kong and New York that drew thousands of visitors. The bag is far from pristine—on the contrary, it’s lived-in, worn, and used like few others in the luxury collectibles world. It shows scratches, stains, the initials “J.B.” engraved on the flap, and even a pair of silver nail clippers hanging from the shoulder strap, a personal detail from Jane Birkin herself. Moreover, it differs from classic Birkins in size, hardware, side rings, and strap: according to Sotheby’s, these details have never been replicated in later models, making the object even more unique.

As for the future of the Birkin, according to the Tokyo Weekender, Valuence Japan is willing to exhibit the bag as an artistic and cultural asset. The group plans to take the Birkin on a traveling exhibition and to develop educational projects focused on reuse and the longevity of objects, leveraging the message of freedom and originality that Jane Birkin always embodied. While speculation could have turned the Birkin into yet another commodity, far removed from the authentic character of the English actress, the Japanese acquisition instead revives the symbolic dimension of an icon that, though born to solve a practical need on a Paris-to-London flight, today reminds the entire industry that true fashion lies in the story an object can tell, not in media hype.