30p Harry Potter book from Wolverhampton library is super rare first edition worth thousands

A Harry Potter book bought for 30p after being withdrawn from Wolverhampton Library, is an ultra-rare first edition worth thousands of pounds.

The hardback copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the first in the original series of books by JK Rowling, was published by Bloomsbury in 1997.

The first edition, first impression with laminated boards is one of only 500 produced and of those, it's one of only 300 sent to libraries.

It was discovered by auctioneers searching through hundreds of boxes which belonged to a man, 55, from Rugeley who died.

He'd started collecting and dealing books while still at school.

His family knew he'd acquired a potentially valuable Harry Potter book, but he was unsure where it was so feared it was 'lost'.

The book is estimated at £3,000 to £5,000 although staff at Richard Winterton Auctioneers' believe it could far exceed that on the day.

“What an amazing find! Withdrawn and discarded from the library, bought for 30p and now worth thousands of pounds,” said auctioneer Richard Winterton.

“The book still bears its library identification, spine sticker with the letter J, subsequent withdrawal stamp and 30p selling price.

“It has clearly been well-read, which is most befitting of one of the initial run of books which helped fuel the early popularity of Potter – which, of course, rapidly evolved into a global phenomenon.

“We have placed an estimate of £3,000 to £5,000 on the book because of its much-loved condition but other examples have fetched much more than this at auction.

“It will certainly be a magical moment when it goes under the hammer at Lichfield on July 10.”

The book was part of the personal collection of a Staffordshire man who had a lifelong passion for books and ephemera.

He lived in Brereton, Rugeley, for a number of years before latterly moving to Chase Terrace, Burntwood, and passed away unexpectedly at the beginning of the year aged 55.

The man’s sister, who asked not to be named, said: “He started dealing in books and memorabilia when he was still at school.

“He would go to jumble sales and church fairs and would come back with a pile of annuals or comics.

“He would then take them to a second-hand shop in Hednesford to sell or take them in to school to swap with friends.

“That was his passion from an early age onwards.”

The family knew that he had acquired a valuable Harry Potter book but feared it had gone astray.

“When he moved house four years ago he literally put everything into hundreds of boxes, many of which went into containers,” his sister added.

“We knew that he had got the book but if you asked him to pinpoint it he couldn’t.

“So for the last four years this book has been ‘lost’ and I think we had come to the conclusion that it had disappeared into the ether somewhere.

“Now it’s come to light again we, as a family, are quite excited.”

The book will go on auction on Monday 10 July.

How do I know if I've got a first edition copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone?

The first things to check are that the publisher is Bloomsbury and the latest date listed in the copyright information must be 1997.

The print line on the copyright page must read “10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1”, ten down to one, exactly. The lowest figure in the print line indicates the printing.

Look at how the book is bound - the first printing was bound in two different ways. The rarest is the hardback issue, with a cover of laminated boards. Only 500 copies were bound this way, and 300 of those were sent to libraries.

Because library books receive so much wear and tear, there are only 200 copies in potentially good condition and these rarely appear on the market. The other binding was a regular paperback of which a few thousand copies were produced for sale.

Another way of checking if it's a first edition is to look on the rear cover - there should be an 'o' missing in the word 'Philosopher's'.

On page 53, in the list of school supplies that Harry receives from Hogwarts, the item “1 wand” must appear twice, once at the beginning and once at the end. This mistake was corrected in the second printing of the book - although it did reappear in some later printings.