Harry Potter book found in Oxfordshire school sells for £29k

The ultra-rare edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was discovered during a clear-out at St Kenelm's Primary School in Minster Lovell.

Purchased in 1997, the proof copy gets the author’s name wrong stating ‘J A Rowling’ instead of J K Rowling and was one of only 200 printed by Bloomsbury.

The school had feared it had accidentally been thrown away after it went missing for around 10 years but it turned up in a cupboard during a summer tidy-up last year.

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Jim Spencer with the rare Harry Potter book. (Image: Hansons / SWNS)

It had been initially read by pupils but when the series became so popular the school took it off its shelves for safekeeping.

The book was bought by local businessman Dale Henry for £15,000 last September after it was sold by Hansons Auctioneers, in Etwall, Derbys.

He had planned to donate it to a local museum but instead sent it to auction for a second time in the USA to raise money for the village.

It went under the hammer at Heritage Auctions in Dallas, Texas, where it sold for $37,500, including buyer's premium, on Thursday, July 25.

Mr Henry said before the sale: "When I first heard of the proof, I was immediately intrigued by both its unique history and its connection to the area – as well as the fact that my wife is a massive Potterhead.

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The uncorrected Proof Copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. (Image: Hansons / SWNS)

“I hope others are similarly compelled, and I see this auction as an opportunity to reinvest in the community during a tough time.”

Mr Henry said Faringdon Town Council's museum was unable to accommodate such a valuable item so he decided to auction it off.

Bob Alder, 75, retired St Kenelm’s School headteacher from Witney, said: “The book was purchased by St Kenelm’s in 1997 from Red House Books Ltd, which held an annual sale of books from its warehouse in Witney.

"Local schools, nurseries and play groups had the first choice of books in the sale.

“Books were usually about half price, some even less, and the school would purchase something like 50 books in each of the annual sales.

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"It was quite by luck that the Harry Potter was spotted in the sale. It cost £1. It was not thought to have any value.

"However, it was known from press coverage that the story was something special, and to read extracts to the children would encourage them to own their own copy.

“Fortunately, first editions were soon purchased by children as well as the school, so the uncorrected, Proof Copy was left largely untouched on the shelves among other intensely read Harry Potter books.

“By 2002 it was realised first edition copies of Harry Potter were becoming collectors’ items and finding the Proof Copy on the shelves, the school realised it might have value.

"Consequently, it was put somewhere safe. In 2015 it went missing and there was concern it had been thrown away in a clear out of old paperbacks.

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Only 200 of these were printed. (Image: Hansons / SWNS)

“The book was rediscovered in 2023 during a tidy-up, and knowing there were only 200 copies issued, it seemed time for it to find a new owner.

"The buyer will be pleased to know he will be helping fund children in St Kenelm’s School to further develop their love of literature.”

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