Rare Harry Potter hardback first edition sells for £60,000
The hardback copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone had been sitting on a bookshelf for 21 years when it's owner decided to finally get it valued.
And he was left stunned to discover it was a much sought-after first edition, of which only 500 were ever printed in 1997, and deemed a "holy grail" for collectors.
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Hide AdExperts believed the J K Rowling novel would fetch between £20,000 to £30,000 when it went under the hammer at Hansons Auctioneers in Etwall, Derbys.
Bdders competed against rivals across the globe before it was snapped up by a private international buyer for double its estimate.
The hammer price was £60,000 but the total paid - with buyer's premium - was a whopping £75,000.
Hansons book expert Jim Spencer said: "I'm absolutely thrilled the book achieved such an outstanding price for our vendor.
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Hide Ad"I hoped it would make £50,000 but to see it sail past that to reach £60,000 was astonishing.
"It's the highest price ever paid at Hansons for a hardback first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
"True first issues are seriously scarce. Only 500 were printed, 300 of which were sent to schools and libraries."This is extra rare because it's one of the remaining 200. It's a cliched phrase, but they really are the holy grail for collectors. I'd dreamed of finding one for years."The seller, who will put the money towards paying off his daughter's student loan,said he never thought in his "wildest dreams" the book would be worth that much.The retired British expat, who worked in aviation, purchased the book over 20 years ago help teach his kids English after moving to Luxembourg.He said: "A couple of months ago when JKR bounced into the main news, I decided to re-read the Potter series."I did not think mine would be valuable as it was certainly not purchased when first published."I was very surprised and shocked to see that it did in fact tick all the boxes, but still could not quite believe it until I checked with Jim Spencer."I am absolutely delighted with the fantastic sale price achieved."I think that the rarity of the book, the enthusiasm of Jim Spencer, who has positioned himself as the world's foremost Harry Potter expert, and the genius of JK Rowling, who has created a magical world that children from all over the world will be reading about for generations to come, all contributed to such a great result."The Harry Potter books are truly iconic - in the very top tier of literature for children - and this first edition can only increase in value in the future."Congratulations to the buyer."The vendor, who bought the book around 18 months after it was first published by mail order from Barnes & Noble, added: "I needed English books to read to my three children at bedtime as I was on a mission to teach them my native language from an early age."It's just been sitting on a shelf ever since with the rest of the Harry Potter books, with no special care.