Rare 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' to be auctioned by Christie's for £200,000

A rare first edition of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone", is to be auctioned by Christies on June 15th with an estimate of £200,000.

This particular first edition is famed for its spelling mistakes and typos, notably the misspelling of ‘philosphers’ on the back cover, and on page 53 where there is a list of required items to attend Hogwarts and ‘one wand’ is repeated a second time.

The 1997 Philosopher’s Stone first edition is one of just 500 hardback copies printed of which 300 were sent to libraries.

Harry Potter memorabilia is much in demand at the moment with quite a few interesting auctions on the horizon.

Over at specialist book auctioneer Dominic Winter on June 15th is a Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, 1st edition, London: Bloomsbury, 1998 with a £1,000 - £1,500 estimate.

Harry Potter book auction Dominic Winter

Image: Dominic Winter

Dominic Winter also have a Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, 1st edition, London: Bloomsbury, 1999, with the same £1,000 - £1,500 estimate, but this lot also includes a Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, 2003, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, 2005, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, 2007, 1st editions, plus 7 other Harry Potter paperbacks.

But perhaps the best of the lot is the Prop Store auction on 24th June which offers an original piece of Harry Potter movie memorabilia - A Hogwarts student Gryffindor House robe.

Harry Potter robes at The Prop Store

Image: The Prop Store

These robes featured in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when the  Hogwarts students wore these robes as part of their uniform, notably when Professor Trelawney (Emma Thompson) received an Order of Dismissal by Hogwarts High Inquisitor Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton).

The robe has an estimate of $10,000 - $15,000.

The Prop Store auction also includes one of the rarer 'red wax seal' Hogwarts Acceptance letters with an estimate of $12,000 - $16,000.

Previous sales of the red wax seal example include £7,562 at Bonhams in December 2019 and another for $30,000, also at the Prop Store, in August 2020.

Also on offer is an example of the less rare 'printed seal' acceptance letter however this is signed by Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton and Matthew Lewis, hence the estimate of $3,000 - $5,000. This is the first 'film cast signed' one we have seen at auction for some time so is well worth a look.

Another great piece of Harry Potter memorabilia at the upcoming Prop Store auction is a wand used in the order of the Phoenix movie which has an estimate of $6,000 - $8,000.

This is a red hot market, backed by millienials, that shows no signs of abating. Our view is "Better than bitcoin".

 

 

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