A rare first edition British copy of
Philosopher's Stone was expected to fetch £12,000 ($24,609.62) at auction. It
ended up going for £19,700 ($40,355.88)! One of only five hundred copies, it had only been read a single time!
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Many of the first editions of the book, which set the boy wizard bandwagon rolling, were bought by libraries and have since disintegrated or are in very poor condition.
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According to Crispin Jackson, head of books at Christie's South Kensington, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is the most valuable book in the series by a long way.
"From Goblet of Fire onwards, the series took off so quickly that first editions were common because the print runs were huge," he said. "The collecting buzz started with Prisoner of Azkaban in 1999 and while the market slightly dipped before the publication of Deathly Hallows, it has picked up again with the conclusion of the series and the huge success of the films".
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A proof copy of the novel, with a printing error on the title page, went for £2,250 ($4,610.46).
A paperback and hardback edition of
Chamber of Secrets, both signed & inscripted by J.K.Rowling, were sold for £1,250 ($2,563.50).
Source:
HPANA 
Rare first edition Philosopher's Stone auctioned 
