A Russian governor has decided to put on sale a woman’s best-loved accessory: a designer handbag he received as a gift from none other than the Italian film legend, Sophia Loren.
Her signature Georgio Armani bag is now set to go under the hammer at an auction next month with a starting price of $30,000.
It so happened that the Marriage Italian-Style movie icon was visiting Kemerovo Region earlier this month, taking part in the “Kuzbass – Territory of Goodness” charity marathon to raise money for children.
The 77-year-old actress enjoyed her trip to Siberia so much that she felt impelled to make a gift to Kemerovo Region Governor Aman Tuleyev. The first thing that came to her mind was to empty the bag she was carrying, sign her autograph, and give it to Tuleyev.
The money raised from selling the celebrity handbag is expected to help Russian children undergo expensive surgery.
Loren was quoted as saying that she often receives invitations to come to Russia, mostly to attend private parties. “I have to refuse such invitations because I don’t want to take part in events for oligarchs. However, when I was invited to Kuzbass [Kemerovo] to help children in need, I was happy to do that,” the actress told Vesti.ru.