Rare first edition Harry Potter could fetch £50,000 at Staffordshire auction

A newly-discovered hardback copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, unearthed by Hansons Auctioneers books expert Jim Spencer, is set to be sold at Hansons’ Staffordshire Library Auction on October 13 with an estimate of £20,000 to £30,000.

However, it could fetch as much as £50,000 thanks to its good condition and the fact it is one of only 500 copies.

It had been sitting on a book shelf for around 21 years when the owner randomly decided to check it – but never in his wildest dreams did he expect it to be a first edition.

The retired British expat, who worked in aviation and lives in Luxembourg, said: "A couple of months ago when J K Rowling bounced into the main news I decided to re-read the Potter series. I knew there had been a few first editions sold recently so, just to be safe, I checked the criteria.

“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.”

There are various ways to identify a Philosopher’s Stone first issue, published by Bloomsbury in 1997, including duplication of ‘1 wand’ on page 53. However, most importantly, the issue number must read: ‘10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1’.

Jim said: "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. And yet this is my fourth one in just over a year! It's a cliched phrase, but they really are the holy grail for collectors. I’d dreamed of finding one for years before my first magical discovery in Staffordshire.

“This new copy deserves to do really well because it’s in astonishingly good condition. I would love to see it make £50,000."

The vendor, who wishes to remain anonymous, added: “I bought the book for my children around 18 months after it was first published. If I remember correctly, I bought it by mail order from Barnes & Noble so I am guessing they had it in their warehouse for a while.

“I was prompted to buy it after reading a positive review in the Weekend FT. 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. Their mother is Luxembourgish and they were going to state schools here in Luxembourg, so I needed to make a bit of an effort.

“It’s just been sitting on a shelf ever since with the rest of the Harry Potter books, with no special care. It’s actually been read only once with the date recorded in the back of the book. One of the children stuck Harry Potter pictures in the book when the first film came out.

“I was a big fan of the Potter books when I first read them. I have decided to sell now as I would like to pay off my daughter's student loan for her, which will give her a good credit history and help her to apply for a mortgage."

The hardback first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone is due to be sold in Hansons’ Library Auction on October 13. To find out more, email jspencer@hansonsauctioneers.co.uk.