A rare first-edition hardback of one of the first Harry Potter novels – originally purchased from WHSmith in 1997 – has sold for £85,000 at an auction solely dedicated to the children’s series.
Thirteen books were sold in total through Rare Book Auctions, including two paperback versions of the same JK Rowling novel for £12,000 each and another, with a stained cover, selling for £6,000.
With more than 600 million copies sold worldwide, Harry Potter is the best-selling book series in history and a cultural phenomenon. Now, many are wondering whether the copies they have of the books might be worth something.
Dust off your copies and keep reading to discover if you’re in with a chance of earning a pretty penny from your Harry Potter books.
First edition of the Philosopher’s Stone: £5,000 to £100,000
During the first book’s original release in July 1997, only 5,150 paperback copies and 500 hardback versions were printed. With the series’ success, these copies are now incredibly valuable, and can be worth up to tens of thousands depending on their condition and whether they’re signed by JK Rowling (whose name is written as Joanne Rowling inside these copies).
According to WeBuyBooks, these are some other details you need to spot to tell if your copy is a first edition:
- On the bottom of the front cover, there should be a credit by Wendy Cooling that reads: “A terrific read and stunning first novel”.
- On the reverse of the title page, a number sequence at the bottom should read: “10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1”. According to the retailer, the sequence must go down to number one, as this denotes that the copy is from the book’s first print run.
- Several misprints indicate a copy is first edition: on the top of page 53, “1 wand” is listed twice in a list titled “Other Equipment”. On the back cover, the first paragraph should begin with “Acclaim for Harry Potter and the Philospher’s Stone” where “Philosopher’s” is missing a second O.
First edition of the Chamber of Secrets: up to £7,000
As the series grew in popularity, more and more first editions of Rowling’s books were printed with every new instalment, meaning they decrease slightly in their worth as the series goes on. If you own a first edition copy, though (especially a signed one), you could still pocket a couple of thousand.
AbeBooks – which specialises in rare books – estimates that hardcover first editions of the series’ second title could fetch up to £7,000. Because Rowling wasn’t that famous at this time, a number of signed copies exist too – which could boost a copy’s worth into four figures.
First edition of the Prisoner of Azkaban: up to £9,500
According to the retailer, there’s a special edition of the third title which could score you a nice payout. The first print run of the hardcover was stopped, mid-printing, when it was discovered that ‘Joanne Rowling’ was printed on the copyright page instead of JK Rowling.
Although only a small number of copies were printed, they could be worth nearly £10,000 if you have a pristine, signed copy. You’ll need to look out for the number sequence “10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1” and for a block of misaligned text on the seventh page of the book to prove it, though.
First edition of the Goblet of Fire: up to £8,000
At this point, Rowling’s star was shining bright, so she signed fewer copies of first editions. If your first edition copy of Goblet of Fire boasts a signature from the author (or one of the book’s illustrators) it could be worth up to £8,000.
In regards to the rest of the series, signed copies of the rest of the series could go for the following:
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: A copy signed by Rowling at the midnight launch of the event in Edinburgh could be priced at four figures
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Only a handful of signed first-edition copies are available, and have sold for just shy of £4,000
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Rowling signed first-edition copies for 1,700 lucky people who won tickets to a special launch event at the Natural History Museum. The most expensive copy to sell went for nearly £4,500
