You probably could never afford to buy this handbag, and someone paid RM1.6mil for it

A staff member poses holding a rare Hermes handbag, the mat white Birkin Himalaya 35 during an auction preview at Christie's in Paris. Photo: Reuters

A diamond-encrusted crocodile-skin Hermes handbag with white gold details has broken the record for the world's most expensive ever sold at auction, fetching millions at a Hong Kong sale.

The rare Himalaya Niloticus Crocodile Diamond Birkin 30 went to an unknown phone bidder recently for HK$2.94mil (RM1.6mil)  after intense bidding, a spokeswoman for auction house Christie's said.