10-year-old bag sold for $217,144 in London auction
London, June 13 : A 10-year-old second-hand Hermes Birkin bag has sold for $217,144 in London, a new European record for the most expensive handbag sold at an auction.
The 2008 Himalaya Birkin, with an 18-carat white gold diamond encrusted lock, exceeded its list price of 100,000-150,000 pounds on Tuesday, reports the BBC.
The record for a bag sold at auction - also a Hermes Birkin - is $380,000, set in Hong Kong in 2017. It is the "undisputed most valuable bag in the world", auction house Christie's said.
It was first time the bag had been offered in a European auction, said Matthew Rubinger, international director at the auctioneers. The niloticus crocodile bag was said to be in "grade 2 condition" with no obvious flaws.
It measures just 30 cm wide - smaller than the original Birkin handbag - and is made from nilo crocodile hide and features diamonds.
Its name refers to the colour gradient, said to resemble the snow-capped hills of the Himalayas. A 2006 blue version of the handbag sold for $133,608 at the same auction on Tuesday, the BBC reported.
New Birkin bags can start at around $9,350 each, but they are not easy to buy, with famously long waiting lists.
The French luxury fashion house Hermes designed what became known as the Birkin in 1981.
Named after the singer and actress Jane Birkin, it has become one of the most sought-after accessories in the world, but it began as a quest for the perfect holdall.
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Karnataka govt to strictly implement the paid menstrual leave policy, after HC directive
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Labour Minister Santosh Lad has said that the government will strictly implement the paid menstrual leave policy across all sectors at the earliest, following the High Court directive.
The High Court of Karnataka had recently directed the state government to "strictly and faithfully" implement the menstrual leave policy, pending formal enactment of the proposed legislation.
"I welcome the directive issued by the Karnataka High Court in support of our state government's ambitious menstrual leave policy," Lad said.
The state government has taken firm steps to implement the menstrual leave policy comprehensively, and as a model to the country, he said in a post on 'X' on Thursday.
"In line with the court's opinion that menstrual leave is a matter of women's dignity, justice, and humane recognition of their lived realities, we will strictly implement the paid menstrual leave policy--equivalent to one day per month, or 12 days per year--across all sectors at the earliest," he added.
The court had said that in the interregnum, it shall be incumbent upon the state to ensure effective operationalisation of the policy through the issuance of suitable guidelines, circulars, and administrative instructions, as may be necessary to secure its uniform, consistent, and rigorous implementation across all sectors.
The court issued the directive while hearing on a petition filed by 41-year-old Chandravva Hanumant Gokavi, who works in a hotel in Mudalgi of Gokak taluk in Belagavi district, before the Dharwad bench, seeking implementation of the November 20, 2025, order of the government providing one-day menstrual leave for all working women.
