A remarkable example of the first hardback issue of the first edition of the first Harry Potter book, one of only 500 copies.
“There are all kinds of courage,” said Dumbledore, smiling. “It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends."
On 26 June 1997, Bloomsbury published Philosopher's Stone with an initial print-run of 500 copies in hardback. Three hundred of these were distributed to libraries, with the remaining two hundred allocated for bookshops. The limited print run was standard for a first novel, and publisher Barry Cunningham hoped that booksellers would read the book and recommend it to customers (for a presentation copy of Beedle the Bard to Barry, see lot 1141). To find a copy in almost mint condition is an immense rarity. The present example carries the requisite first edition points: the seventh line of the publisher's imprint page carries no space between 'Taylor' and '1997'; p. 53 has in 'Other Equipment' listed twice '1 wand'; the lower cover has misspelt 'Philospher's'.
"One weekend after flat hunting, I took the train back to London on my own and the idea for Harry Potter fell into my head... A scrawny, little, black-haired, bespectacled boy became more and more of a wizard to me... I began to write Philosopher's Stone that very evening.”
Philosopher's Stone features cover art by the illustrator Thomas Taylor. This was his first professional commission, and his impression of the sorcerer on the lower cover was a personal generic representation. "I was asked to provide a 'wizard to decorate the back cover.' So I did. The books are full of magical characters and sorcerers, so it wasn't difficult to conjure up one of my own. It never even crossed my mind to depict Dumbledore." The publishers were inundated with queries over this depiction and it was later replaced by a specific portrayal by Taylor of Dumbledore, probably for the 18th impression. Sotheby's has the immense pleasure of handling Taylor's original art in the morning session of The Library of Dr. Rodney P. Swantko (see lot 37).
![View 1 of Lot 37: Thomas Taylor [artist] | The original cover art for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone](https://sothebys-com.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d1ebf1b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1485x2000+0+0/resize/279x376!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsothebys-md.brightspotcdn.com%2Fwebnative%2Fimages%2Ff2%2Fc2%2F2caad95842fa8bc567fa014a6b08%2Fn11497-cvjkc-t1-05.jpg)
When Philosopher’s Stone was an instant hit, Bloomsbury issued more and more print runs. The book has now sold an incredible 120 million copies and has been translated into 85 languages. It is the fourth best-selling book of all time.
The Harry Potter series is certainly the most popular children's fantasy series in recent history, and to encounter the first installment in such an exquisite state of preservation is a most unusual privilege. The present copy is being offered exactly 27 years—to the day—after the book was first published.
This first edition, first impression, has the following issue points:
- The publisher listed as Bloomsbury at the bottom of the title page
- "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1" on the publisher’s imprint page
- On page 53, in the list of school supplies that Harry receives from Hogwarts, the item “1 wand” appears twice
- On the back cover there is a missing “o” in “Philospher’s Stone”
REFERENCE
Errington, Rowling A1(a)
Exceptional Harry Potter material on offer at Sotheby’s this summer
