Your old Harry Potter book could be worth $100,000 — just look out for these printing mistakes

Literature is a treasure trove of knowledge and culture in itself, but vintage books and even old comics have emerged as precious collectors' items. "Harry Potter" is one of the most iconic series of books with characters who became pop culture icons in the past couple of decades. That's why it isn't surprising that the first edition of the fantasy fiction book is worth a fortune today. Yes, the first book published in June 1997, has now become a highly sought-after treasure, because only 500 hardcover copies were printed for it. Most of these copies then went to libraries and only around 200 are said to be owned by collectors in mint condition.

Now, these initial copies have become precious with prices soaring past $100,000 at various auctions. One book was sold for an astronomical  $471,000, showing how books we carried around as kids could someday become a rarity. To identify an early edition, you need to look for indicators such as the author's name appearing as "Joanne Rowling" instead of "J.K Rowling," that we now know her as. There's also a notable misprint on page 53 where "1 wand" is listed twice in the equipment list. The initial edition of the book also signifies the beginning of an iconic literary journey for J.K. Rowling. Most of these original copies of the book were delivered to various libraries where they may have been handled roughly, which makes those that collectors held on to even more precious. 

The first print was bound in two different ways, the rarest is the hardback issue with a cover of laminated boards. Also, the publisher must be listed as Bloomsbury at the bottom of the title page. Make sure that the date listed in the copyright information is 1997 and the print line on the copyright page must read “10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1”, from ten down to one. The lowest figure in the print line indicates the edition. (For instance, if your copy has “20 19 18 17”, it’s a less valuable seventeenth print.)

Hanson's Associate Director of Books Jim Spencer spoke to Yahoo News and talked about the qualities that make a book a collectible. "I get hundreds of emails every day from people who think they've found a first edition Harry Potter and want to know how much it's worth. But a lot of them end up disappointed. A genuine first edition of JK Rowling's first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, in good condition, is very scarce," he said. 

"A lot of people think they've got a first edition, but technically they aren't. Only 500 first-edition hardback copies of the first book were published and 300 went to schools. So they ended up getting read and passed around a lot and I've seen some that a practically falling apart. A genuine first edition in good edition is very rare and if it was signed by JK Rowling in 1997 at the time of publication it could be worth £100,000," he added.