A fuchsia crocodile-skin Hermes bag has broken the record for the
most expensive handbag sold at an auction, selling for US$222,912
(S$302,400) at a Christie's auction in Hong Kong.
The shiny pink bag was sold to an Asian telephone bidder in an
auction that saw "fast-paced bidding from start to finish", Christie's
said in a statement on Monday. The final price realised at the Monday
auction was about 15 per cent more than the auction house's estimate.
"With its 18k white gold and diamond hardware, Hermes Shiny Fuchsia
Porosus Crocodile Diamond Birkin 35 dazzled the crowds, achieving a
HK$1.72 million record," Christie's said in the statement.
The bag features a gold and diamond-encrusted clasp and padlock. It is 35cm wide and 25cm tall.
At the same auction that saw about 300 designer handbags going under
the hammer, a shiny black crocodile Kelly bag was sold for US$145,000,
breaking the record for the most expensive Kelly bag sold at an auction.
The auction house's handbags and accessories sale achieved US$5.99 million in sales.
Designer handbags are the latest craze for collectors, taking global auction houses by storm and fetching record prices.
The previous auction record for a Hermes bag was US$203,000, while
that for any bag at auction was US$218,500, paid in December 2011 at
Christie's in New York for a diamond and gold handbag which had
belonged to the late actress Elizabeth Taylor.
