A piece of fashion history is heading to Abu Dhabi. A Hermes handbag once owned by the late British-French icon Jane Birkin will go under the hammer on December 5, Sotheby’s announced on Tuesday.

Nicknamed the “Birkin Voyageur”, the black leather bag is estimated to fetch between Dh845,000 and Dh15,80,000. It was gifted to Birkin by Hermès in 2003, one of four replacements she received after auctioning her original Birkin bag in 1994 to raise funds for an AIDS charity.

This particular bag was first auctioned in 2007 to benefit a human rights organisation before landing in a private collection.

“Selling her Birkin bags to raise funds for charities she cared deeply about… became a tradition for Jane Birkin, with Hermès replacing them every time,” said Sotheby’s.

The original Birkin, designed especially for her, set a record when it sold for Dh37 million in Paris earlier this year, the most expensive handbag ever auctioned.

“To present not one, but two of Jane Birkin’s personal Hermès bags in a single year is nothing short of historic,” said Morgane Halimi, Sotheby’s Global Head of Handbags and Fashion.

Adding to its allure, the Birkin Voyageur features a handwritten note from Birkin herself, etched inside in French: “My Birkin bag, my globetrotting companion.”

Fashion fans and collectors can view the legendary piece when it goes on display in Abu Dhabi from December 2 to 5, ahead of the sale.