Check Out the Sotheby's Mega Handbag Auction Price for a Diamond Hermès Birkin

It has been announced that the first auction offering of Hong Kong billionaire, and fugitive, Joseph Lau's 'visionary collection' is the largest sale of single-owner handbags in the Asian market, according to Sotheby's. It doesn't stop there, there is much more to come.

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You don't have to worry about what's in your purse. It is estimated that these handbags alone could fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars at a monumental Sotheby's auction that closed on Thursday - one of them was the 2006 Hermès Bleu Jean Shiny Porosus Crocodile Birkin 25 with 18-karat white gold and diamond hardware.

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One of the world's most coveted handbags and commanding a long waiting list, the Birkin bag in question drew an auction bid of HK$1.52 million, representing nearly $192,000. It is still one of the world's most sought-after handbags and commands a long waiting list, as well. There was no doubt that it was the most expensive item in the sale.

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There were 76 Hermès HESAY, +0.22% bags, and one Chanel bag offered at Sotheby's by Hong Kong billionaire, collector, and wanted felon Joseph Lau, said the auction house, who sold the items for a total of HK$25.2 million ($3.2 million), according to the auction house.

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A bronze metallic Hermès Kelly as well as six diamond Birkins were some of the other items included in the Lau sale.

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As stated by the auction house, the handbag sale was the largest single-owner sale of handbags on the Asian auction market, and was part of a "visionary collection of Joseph Lau". According to the auction house, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to charity, although the amount has not been disclosed.

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In an article leading up to the auction, Sotheby's had described the catalog as one of the most important pieces of fashion history ever collected. This was the first in a two-part sale entitled “The Art of Collecting Handbags: The Visionary Collection of Joseph Lau.” The second part will be held in July.

71-year-old Lau, whose fortune was mostly derived from the Hong Kong real estate market, has purchased more than 1,500 Hermès bags as gifts, Trade Algo reported.

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Hong Kong property values have dropped by $2 billion since the second half of 2021, lowering Lau's net worth to $6 billion.

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After he was convicted in 2014 for bribery and money laundering in Macau, the Chinese gambling hub, Lau now lives in Hong Kong as a fugitive after he has handed over control of much of his fortune to family members. HK and the territory have a no-extradition pact in place because of which no one can be extradited. It is also well known that Lau bought his daughter a 12-carat blue diamond in 2015 for 48.6 million Swiss francs ($52.9 million), which was a record price at the time. 

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Lau is an avid art collector, and Forbes estimates that his wealth total includes at least $1 billion worth of Warhol, Gauguin, and Basquiat pieces. "The Splash" was one of the David Hockney paintings that he sold for $30 million to an investor in 2020.