A pair of brown suede leather Birkenstock Arizona sandals that were personally owned and worn by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs are up for auction and are expected to fetch anywhere from $60,000 to $80,000 (Rs 48,32,889- Rs 64,43,852), as per the auctioneer, Julien's Auctions.
Along with the sandals, the auction also includes an NFT photo of the sandals, as well as a book by photographer Jean Pigozzi. The book is titled "The 213 Most Important Men in My Life," and features Mr Jobs as one of the significant figures.
The auction went live on November 11 and is expected to be concluded on November 13.
As per the details on the auction house's website, Mr Jobs wore this particular pair of sandals in the 1970's and 1980's. Mark Sheff, Steve Jobs' home manager, previously owned this pair of Birkenstock sandals.
In an interview with Vogue, Chrisann Brennan, the Apple co-founder's former wife, talked about the iconic staple of Mr Jobs' wardrobe. She said, "The sandals were part of his simple side. They were his uniform. The great thing about a uniform is that you don't have to worry about what to wear in the morning."
She continued, "He would never have done or bought anything just to stand out from others. He was simply convinced of the intelligence and practicality of the design and the comfort of wearing it. And in Birkenstocks he didn't feel like a businessman, so he had the freedom to think creatively."
The auction house states that Steve Jobs wore these sandals during many pivotal moments in Apple's history. "In 1976, he hatched the beginnings of Apple computer in a Los Altos garage with Apple's co-founder Steve Wozniak while occasionally wearing these sandals.When Jobs discovered the ingenuity and practicality of Birkenstocks, he became fascinated," their website mentions.
These sandals have appeared in numerous exhibitions, including the Salone del Mobile in Milan, Italy in 2017, the Birkenstock Headquarters in Rahms, Germany in 2017, the company's first U.S. site in SoHo, New York, the IMM Koln furniture fair in Cologne, Germany, the Zeit Event Berlin for the magazine Die Zeit in 2018, and most recently, the History Museum Wurttemberg in Stuttgart, Germany.
As per the latest information on the Julien's Auctions website, the bid started at $15,000 and two current bids are for $22,500.
