A £4.99 copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, kept in an attic for almost 30 years, could make five figures at auction after it turned out to be a rare first edition.
Described as a pristine “time capsule”, the paperback is, says an expert, “perhaps the finest example ever to come to market.”
Katrina McNicol was 24 in 1997 and working on a magazine in the Highlands when she was sent a copy of the paperback to review.
At the time, the Boy Wizard was yet to find international fame, and the unread paperback languished on a pile, before ending up in storage.
Katrina said: “Each week I received more than 20 titles to review, and it was impossible to feature them all.
“I’ve never quite known why I set this particular book aside, long before the Harry Potter phenomenon began, but I carried it with me from home to home with dozens of others, and I’m so glad that I did.”
She described the astonishment of rediscovering it in the attic of her Edinburgh home during a clear out almost three decades later.
She said: “I genuinely forgot it existed it. When I came across it in a box 30 years later, I did a double take. It felt surreal. I knew how old it was and suspected it might be worth something. You don’t expect to stumble across something so valuable in your own attic.”
Now the book has a guide price of £7,000-£10,000 at Lichfield-based Rare Book Auctions, part of Hansons Auctioneers, online sale ending on May 20.
When J.K. Rowling’s debut novel was first published, Bloomsbury expected little demand and printed just 500 hardbacks and a little over 5,000 paperbacks – making both editions exceptionally rare.
But it is the pristine nature of this book that sets it apart from other well-thumbed examples.
Harry Potter expert, Jim Spencer, director of Rare Book Auctions, said: “”This is the best example I’ve ever handled – and I’ve handled a few.
“Many were passed among friends, squished inside school rucksacks, splashed with orange squash, and scribbled with doodles, but this example has been perfectly preserved in a time capsule. It is as good as the day it was made.”
The rare paperback also includes all the telltale signs of a genuine first edition, first issue, so loved by collectors.
Jim said: “The first quirk to look out for is the missing ‘o’ in the word philosopher’s’ on the back cover. It also refers to ‘Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft’ which was later changed to ‘Witchcraft and Wizardry’.”
On page 53, a list of school supplies Harry receives from Hogwarts refers to item ‘1 wand’ twice – at the start and again at the end, he added.
Jim continued: “This is an exceptionally rare opportunity for Potterheads to bid for perhaps the finest example ever to come onto the market. It simply couldn’t be any better than this.”
Katrina is hoping to share some of the proceeds of the sale with Ayrshire Cancer Support, a charity which recently helped her father.
She said: “The book deserves to be with someone who truly appreciates what it is, a small but genuine piece of publishing history.”
Auction Details
Auction: The Library Sale (Presented by Rare Book Auctions)
Auction date: 6th – 20th May 2026 | 6pm
Location: Rare Book Auctions
Auction contact: [email protected]
Catalogue/bidding: www.hansonslive.co.uk | www.the-saleroom.com
