Three first edition Harry Potter books would have been lost in landfill if not for the actions of a Buckinghamshire school teacher. The teacher, who wishes to remain anonymous, spotted the books in a skip where she worked in 2008 and couldn’t bear to see them go to waste. Now they are expected to bring thousands at auction.
The school was getting rid of tatty books in preparation for an Ofsted inspection. “It just seemed awful to throw them away,” says the seller, a 65-year-old grandmother. “I thought they might be useful for my children or grandchildren in the future. It was better than seeing them go to waste.”
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After the seller rescued the books, she kept them in her loft, but four years ago her son investigated their value. “A London business offered £4,000 for one of the paperbacks there and then, but they just went back into the loft,” the seller said.
Hardback first editions of Philosopher’s Stone are as rare as hens’ teeth.
“Last year we were watching a TV interview with Charles Hanson, owner of Hansons Auctioneers, about the sale of a Harry Potter first edition which sold for thousands at auction and decided to get in touch.”
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The seller then consigned two paperback versions of Harry Potter and Philosopher's Stone and one hardback, which are now going up for auction at Hansons Auctioneers and Valuers in a bumper Harry Potter-themed Library Auction on 21 May. The hardback is expected to sell for between £8,000 and £12,000, and the two paperbacks are expected to fetch £2,000 and £3,000 each.
Jim Spencer, books expert at Hansons, said: “Hardback first editions of Philosopher’s Stone are as rare as hens’ teeth. They’re the holy grail for collectors…”
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There were 500 hardback first editions of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone printed in 1997, which is when Harry Potter made his debut. 300 of the books were sent to British schools and libraries and others were sent to private book shops. All of them contain printing errors, which were corrected in later versions.
“The reason why I’ve put what may seem like a humble estimate of £8,000-12,000 on the latest copy is because the binding is damaged,” says Spencer. “Internally it’s very good, though, and could surprise us.”
