A first edition of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" has sold for £17,000 (approximately $23,000) at an auction in England.
According to Oxu.Az, the news was reported by The Mirror.
The copy, originally priced at just £4.99 in 1997, belonged to Katrina McInnish, a book reviewer from Edinburgh. She bought it second-hand but never read it, keeping it in a box in pristine condition. After about 30 years in the attic, she decided to sell her old belongings.
Hansons Auctioneers, which staged the rare book auction in Lichfield, England, described the copy as an "extremely rare find." When first published, the print run was only 500 hardcover and just over 5,000 paperback copies, as the publisher did not expect high demand. This scarcity has made first editions one of the most sought-after modern collectibles worldwide.
In 2017, a first edition personally signed by J.K. Rowling sold for a record £106,000 (approximately $140,000) at Bonhams auction house.
The British author's seven-book series was published from 1997 to 2007. Translated into over 80 languages, the books have sold more than 500 million copies and inspired more than ten successful films.
