A HARRY Potter first edition book which has been kept in pristine condition for 25 years but was almost handed back by the owner is set to be sold for a record-breaking £100,000 at auction.
The hardback copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone has been stored in darkness, unread, unopened and in a protective sleeve since it was bought in 1997.
But the owner almost let the valuable book slip through his fingers after he nearly returned the £12.99 book… because it did not have a dust jacket.
The novel, which is one of only 500 printed, could smash all records at auction to fetch a six figure sum when it is sold next month.
The seller, a retired paper merchant director from Sussex, said he pre-ordered the book from a bookshop in Surrey almost three decades ago.
And he revealed how he almost contemplated asking for his money back because he thought it had a fatal flaw and only kept it "on the toss of a coin".
The 68-year-old, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “It didn’t have a dust jacket and I thought it should.
“I was really disappointed when I went to pick it up. I’m a collector and, being a first edition, I expected it to have one.
"I decided to keep the book on the toss of a coin. It was a moment of destiny.
“I took it home and tucked it away in darkness on a high book shelf to keep it from prying eyes but, more importantly, because the paper in the book is poor quality.
"I was told to keep it away from sunlight to prevent it going brown.”
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It was only years later he discovered that Philosopher’s Stone hardback first issues didn't come with a dust jacket.
The man said he even bought his daughter a different version when she asked to read the book so he could keep the book in top condition.
He said: "A year after I bought it in 1997, with Harry Potter excitement growing at my daughter’s school, she asked if she could read it. I said no, absolutely not.
“Instead, I bought her another copy and a later issue of The Chamber of Secrets – both in the Harry Potter Gift Set slipcase.
"By that time, I’d also acquired a mint first issue of Chamber of Secrets, which I am also auctioning.”
The copy will be sold by Hansons Auctioneers, in Etwall, Derbyshire, on March 9 with an estimate of £40,000 to £60,000 but it is likely to fetch much more.
Hansons’ books expert Jim Spencer said he thought it was “too good to be true” when the book-owner approached him.
He said: "We sat down and made ourselves comfortable, but I was nervous about removing the book's jacket.
“I inspected the book closely, again and again, comparing it with two other first issues of the same work, studying the covers and text with a magnifying glass.
"Everything added up perfectly. I couldn't believe it. It was like stepping back in time to 1997.
"Let’s hope we can achieve a new world-record price in Britain, the place where the Potter phenomenon was born.”
Jim has sourced and sold 14 hardback first issues of Philosopher’s Stone with prices ranging from £17,000 to more than £60,000 dependent on condition.
In December 2021 a near pristine hardback first edition of Philosopher’s Stone sold for $471,000 (£349,186) from a $70,000 estimate at Heritage Auctions in Dallas, USA.
It’s the highest price ever paid for the boy wizard’s debut in any form and set a modern literature world record.
Charles Hanson, owner of Hansons Auctioneers, said: “It would be amazing to beat the price achieved in America with this near perfect, as-good-as-new Potter first edition.
"Our guide price is £40,000-£60,000, roughly the same as the estimate put on the book sold in Dallas.
"I’d like to think our copy could achieve £100,000 – or, better still, smash the world record.”
While the first edition of the first book was illustrated by Thomas Taylor, a little known fact is the work of Newhaven-based illustrator Cliff Wright who created the artwork for the second and third books in the series: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
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