Art & LiteratureA “nearly perfect” first edition of ‘Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone’ could break records as it goes under the hammer. That’s what experts have said.
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JK Rowling’s novel, which has been kept unread, unopened in a protective sleeve in the dark for 25 years, will be auctioned online on Wednesday at British auction house Hansons. The hardcover, one of only 500 copies from the first edition of the Potter book in 1997, could fetch as much as £100,000 (more than £120,000), the auctioneers say.
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A comparable copy of the book, in near mint condition, fetched $471,000 in December in Dallas, Texas, although it was estimated to be worth $70,000. Charles Hanson, owner of auction house Hansons, wants to exceed the American amount. “Our target price is £40,000 to £60,000, but I hope it will bring in £100,000 or even break the world record.”
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Almost returned
However, the seller of the current book, who paid £12.99 at the time, says he nearly returned it to the store in 1997 because it lacked a cloth cover. “I was really disappointed. I am a collector and as it is a first printing I expected such a cover. I decided to keep the book after flipping a coin. It was fate.”
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The 68-year-old retired West Sussex paper merchant later discovered that the first edition hardcovers never had a cloth cover. “The book is in near perfect condition, it has never been read. A year after I bought it and the hype around Harry Potter grew at my daughter’s school, she asked if she could read it. No, absolutely not, I said.”
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The seller is also auctioning a copy of “The Chamber of Secrets” in perfect condition at auction.
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