Salva Mubarak Senior Features Writer

Years before British author J.K Rowling openly came out as a transphobe and a TERF, the writer was a beloved literary icon who captured the imagination of hundreds and thousands of children all around the world with her words.

If you were one of the earlier fans of the Harry Potter series, much before Rowling gained worldwide recognition, then you could be eligible for a fortune, £200,000 (INR 2 crores, approx) to be precise.

London-based auction house Christie’s is willing to buy first edition copies of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Turns out, the first 500 hardback copies were published with errors in them, which were caught and corrected in the later editions. These first editions also come personally autographed by the author. 300 out of those were sent to libraries and aren’t expected to be in pristine conditions because of the heavy use they must have seen. So the remaining 200 sold to private buyers are the ones that are eligible for the auction, as long as they’re not in a battered condition.

So head on over to your bookshelf and take a look at your old copy of the book to see if you’re one of the lucky few who managed to snag a first edition for themselves.

This elusive copy will be auctioned as a part of Christie’s ‘Art of Literature: Loans and Selling’ exhibition, with books available on display to the public before they’re sold.