J.K. Rowling gets record price for copy of Harry Potter first edition

J.K. Rowling sold a copy of first Harry Potter novel at auction for almost 20,000 pounds (US$41,000; 29,000 EUR).

Photo: J.K. Rowling gets record price for copy of Harry Potter first edition

The copy of the first edition of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," published in 1997, was sold to an anonymous private bidder for 19,700 pounds (US$40,326; 28,250 EUR) at Christie's auction house.

The book was published by Bloomsbury PLC with an initial print run of about 500 copies. Many were purchased by libraries, making copies in good condition extremely rare.

It was published in the United States the next year as "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," and the boy wizard soon became a publishing phenomenon.

The seventh and final installment in Harry's adventures, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," was published in July. The seven books have sold nearly 400 million copies and have been translated into 64 languages.