The tote bag designed for Jane Birkin in the mid-1980s was one of the center-pieces of the "Fashion Icons" sale organized this week in Paris by the Sotheby's auction house.

An absolute record for a luxury handbag.

It took just a few minutes for a Japanese buyer to secure lot number eight , which had originally been set at €1 million. On Thursday, July 10, the original prototype of the Hermès Birkin bag , a time-worn black leather model, sold for €7 million, or €8.58 million including buyer's premium.