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First illustrated edition, first impression (Bloomsbury, 2016). Illustrated by Jim Kay and signed and inscribed by him to the title page: 'For Martin, Thank you for coming along! Best Wishes, Jim Kay'. The first ever illustrated edition. Rare inscribed. Original red cloth with lettering to spine in gilt, pictorial endpapers and paste-downs with a red ribbon marker. A fine book with a very minor and inconspicuous knock to spine in a fine dust jacket.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, FIRST EDITION, 17th printing, WITH VERY CHARMING INSCRIPTION BY THE AUTHOR on half-title "To J.J. (very cool name) from J.K. (not so cool) JK Rowling", number line from 20 to 17 on copyright page, light damp-staining to right margin of dedication page, publisher's pictorial wrappers, creases to covers, light shelf-wear with corners slightly rubbed, two stickers on front cover (Smarties Book Prize Winner 1997 and Free bookmark inside), 8vo, Bloomsbury, [1997]; Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, FIRST EDITION, 1st printing, FOLLOW-UP INSCRIPTION BY THE AUTHOR on dedication page "To JJ (again!) JK Rowling", number line from 10 to 1 on copyright page, previous ownership inscription on inside front cover (JJ's Harry Potter), ink-marks on foredge (not interfering the pages), publisher's pictorial wrappers, corners slightly rubbed, minor wear, sticker on front cover (Smarties Book Prize Winner 1998), 8vo, Bloomsbury, 1998 (2) Kept in custom-made slipcases. Footnotes: In 1998, the dedicatee was attending Abbeyhill Primary School and was invited to Central Hall in Tollcross, Edinburgh during the start of the summer to attend a press event for the book release of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, which J.K Rowling also attended. On arrival, the dedicatee was given a copy of the new book and, as he also had his copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (his class reading book) with him, J.K. Rowling signed both books at the end of the event.--- Check our website: We have the largest collection of rare and signed Harry Potter books for sale in mainland Europe --- Please contact us before purchasing to discuss the most suitable shipping method.

Joanne (Kathleen) Rowling, ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone‘ (1997), UK first edition, fourth printing, and 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets' (1998), UK first edition, seventh printing. Both books published by Bloomsbury in the first issued box set. Both volumes are signed by author J.K. Rowling on the respective half-title pages as shown. Chamber of Secrets is in addition inscribed “to Johnny” According to Philip Errington’s ‘J.K. Rowling: A Bibliogarphy’ (2017), the first Philosopher’ printing had a print run of only 500 copies; the second printing followed quickly with a run of 1,000 copies, followed by the third and fourth printing of 500 copies each only (p.4). Provenance: The signatures are consistant with how Rowling used to sign in 1998-99. Rowling did sign a few of those box sets for school children back in those years. The additional dedication by the author makes it easier to verify the signatures and handwriting. Condition: Philosopher is in near fine condition. It bears no previous owner’s scribbles, no stamps, no bookplates, pages are clean. The boards’ front top corner has a tiny bump as shown. The dust jacket is NOT price clipped and a beautiful specimen, unfaded and showing the young wizard as called for. Chamber of Secrets is in fine condition The box is in near fine condition with only trivial shelf wear. This was the first box set that Bloomsbury published for the Harry Potter Saga. As more and more Harry Potters were published until 2007 the publisher – eager to capitalise on Potter-mania – isuued a new box set containing the latest book together with the volumes that had already been published. A nice set at fair value and genuinely signed by Rowling. Due to the extremely high value of signed UK first hardback first printings editions of ‘The Philosopher’s Stone’, the early reprints have also become highly collectable and valuable. First and Fine

Joanne (Kathleen) Rowling (1997) ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone‘, UK first paperback edition, second printing, published by Bloomsbury. Signed by Rowling on the half title page. Provenance: acquired from a reliable and reputable British auction house. The consignor had this book signed at a Waterstones event in Canterbury in 1999. The signature is consistant with the author’s signature style at that time. Condition: a very good condition book with usual toning to paper commensurate with age. No previous owner’s scribbles. An unread copy with an unbroken spine. Only flaw is a spine fade as shown as well as slight peeling of the laminate which is also common. First and Fine

[Children's literature] ALL FIRST BRITISH EDITIONS WITH ADULT COVERS, SIGNED IN FIRST VOLUME. Octavo. Publisher's black cloth, gilt titles to spine, adult artwork dust-jackets designed by William Webb with printed prices of £11.99 - £16.99, portrait of Rowling on back of dust-jacket taken by Michael Wildsmith. Autograph of J.K.Rowling to title page of first book. Fine condition throughout. An exceptionally difficult set to assemble.

First Edition, First Softcover Printing FIRST Bloomsbury edition, FIRST Softcover Printing in exceptional condition. Accompanied by a laid-in note SIGNED AND INSCRIBED by J.K. Rowling. The note is accompanied by a Letter of Authenticity from a premier authentication house, James Spence, LLC. Not bookclub, Not the Australian edition, Not the Ted Smart edition, Not the Canadian edition, Not ex-library, but the scarce true first edition, first printing near fine Bloomsbury edition with the complete number line of 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1. Wendy Cooling review is present to the base of the front board. The publisher page credits Joanne Rowling and contains no space between “r” and “1″ on Thomas Taylor 1997 in error; 1 Wand is listed twice on page 53, and the mis-print error to the rear panel of the soft wraps is shown as “Philosphers Stone”. Copies of this title unsigned, in similar condition are extremely scarce, with few even available for sale. This copy will be accompanied by a laid-in note Signed and Inscribed by J.K. Rowling, completed in an early signature “To Calvin / Merry Christmas! / J.K. Rowling”. The note with will include a Letter of Authenticity by James Spence, LLC. The stunning condition soft cover has strong unfaded colors with even the spine colors still being vibrant and withOUT any of common color fading to the spine. The binding is tight and square. The wraps are in superb condition with but a few very soft flat creases (along spine, and one to rear), and a very soft flat corner crease to the upper front panel (all of which are quite hard to see). A few very tiny tip/edge rubs (hard to even see in the images) and no laminate issues,(which is unusual as most copies tend to have fully lifted or missing laminate). The interior pages are very clean, unusually bright and flat with only a hint of age toning. The pages have no handling marks, no writing, no marks, no stains and no foxing, no owners names and no inscriptions. A beautiful clean, bright copy with strongly colored outer wraps, EXTREMELY scarce in this condition! Please see images. The J.K. Rowling inscribed and signed note completed in an early signature will be accompanied by a Letter of Authenticity by James Spence, LLC. The inscription reads: “To Calvin / Merry Christmas /J.K. Rowling” Please note hardcover examples of this book have been escalating in price, with a near fine first printing hardcover recently selling at auction for just shy of $470,000, and poor condition shabby hard covers selling over $28,000. And on the other end of the spectrum – very very poor condition softcovers with excessively worn, ripped, faded, tattered covers with missing laminate and having interior damage now sell for over $8,000. Those familiar with “card” or “comic book” grading would recognize that small increments in condition represent large increments in value/price. ADDITIONAL 14 IMAGES AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST. Please see our ABE store for other landmark titles of Children's literature.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone TRUE UK 1st Edition 1st Printing signed by Author An exceptionally rare NR fine copy of this hand signed Philosopher's Stone edition, second only in rarity to the hardback version of the same title. The book has been signed directly to the page by Author JK Rowling with a beautiful early example of her signature without inscription or dedication. This is only the second time this book has been advertised in its lifetime and comes from a private collection where it has remained for 15 year + This book is completely un-restored and free of all inscriptions, marks, stains, toning, foxing, yellowing or sun damage, etc, all commonly found with other examples of this book. Further high-resolution images are available upon request. All true first edition points noted and present in this copy. Wendy Cooling quote to front cover. Young Wizard image, missing 'o' in mis-spelled 'Philosopher's and Wizardry and Witchcraft text in the correct order are all present to the rear cover. Full print run numberline 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 and repeated 1 wand text present to p53 of the book. This is without doubt an incredibly rare book and in as near perfect condition as is possible to find. There is a very light crease to the upper right corner of the front cover and a light crease present to the rear cover. All internal pages are very clean and bright with no damage whatsoever. A beautiful and exacting copy of the rarest and most sought after Harry Potter book to add to any collection.

Very good copy of one of the rarest books of children's literature. Only 500 copies of the first hardback of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone were published, 300 of which were distributed directly to libraries, and only 200 copies were sold privately. This is one of these extremely rare latter copies, with a signed Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone illustrated bookplate loosely inserted. The latter is combined with a letter from J.K. Rowling’s office. Printing number line: 10 - 1; Wendy Cooling quote to the front cover; '1 wand' twice on page 53; 'Philospher's' on the back cover; 'Wizardry and Witchcraft' [rather than 'Witchcraft and Wizardry'] to the back cover. No Dust Jacket as issued. Dedication with the date November 14, 1997, on the title page from parents to their 7-year-old daughter; below that is the name of the original owner in blue felt-tip pen. There are a couple of small dents to the front cover, and there is a small, light circular stain on page 84. For conservation purposes, the pages of the book have been made acid-free by a renowned conservator, from whom a certificate is issued. The lifespan of the book has increased fivefold thanks to this intensive treatment, protecting the pages from decay. In addition, Marchelma van Breugel, the worlds leading expert on modern paper conservation and restoration, did some minor restoration work to the covers of the book. The book is housed in a contemporary storage box with an inlaid image, lined with moleskin inside. The signed bookplate is accompanied by a Letter of Authenticity (LoA) from Adam Houston (TheHarryPotterSpecialist), the world's sole J.K. Rowling signature expert and an informative collector's card that provides additional details. ON REQUEST, A PDF FILE WITH AN EXTENSIVE PRESENTATION OF THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE. A HARDCOVER COPY OF THIS PRESENTATION IS INCLUDED IN THE SALE.

EARLIEST KNOWN COPY OF HARRY POTTER; NO OTHER COPIES LOCATED. On February 26, 1997, this remarkable complete set of galley sheets was sent to the distinguished children's author and literary critic Fiona Waters. In the cover letter accompanying the galley (included here), Rosamund Walker, Children's Marketing Manager of Bloomsbury Publishing wrote, "Further to our conversation, I have enclosed a manuscript for your interest as promised. Once you've had a chance to have a look, I would really appreciate it if you could let me know your comments for pre-publication quotes." The "manuscript," already rejected by twelve other publishers, was Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Waters read these advance galley sheets during a long train journey to Scotland and was immediately captivated by the tale of a young wizard named Harry Potter. While it was Ms. Waters' usual practice to discard galleys after reading them, she retained this one because she believed Harry Potter was a truly special and distinctive book. She wrote back to Bloomsbury Publishing with effusive praise, making a special point of noting that "There is something about Harry Potter that reminds me of Charlie Bucket in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." In replying to Waters' letter, Rosamund Walker wrote that "I'm sure the author will be most flattered with the allusion to Charlie Bucket" - and indeed she was: for the statement was featured prominently on the back cover of the first edition. Historically significant, this is the only known set of advance galley sheets to have survived. It precedes the early June publication of some 200 bound proof copies as well as the first edition that famously appeared on June 26. Intended as they were for prominent reviewers, only a handful of such galleys were produced. Our copy belonged to a lead reviewer whose endorsement undoubtedly helped make the book the spectacular success it became. As Ms. Waters (who signed this galley on the first page) tells it, in recalling her first meeting with J. K. Rowling: "It was very shortly after the first book was published and I was invited to a party by Bloomsbury to celebrate it all. And when I was introduced to her [J. K. Rowling], she flung her arms around me and said, Oh, you are the lovely lady who gave me that wonderful review!" Note: By the late 1990s -well into the digital age of printing - publishers generally did not issue traditional galleys printed from a printing press, but rather printed a set of sheets from a file and copied them for distribution to a limited set of reviewers. This is such a copy; any earlier printed appearance has not been discovered and is almost certainly lost to history. ROWLING, J.K. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. London: Bloomsbury, February 25, 1997. Galley sheets: 224 numbered pages on 109 sheets [the complete text]. Each sheet with text in landscape format, two pages per sheet (rectos only), time-stamped: 2/25/97 11:59am to 2/25/97 12:16pm. Signed at top in ink by Fiona Waters. WITH: Original signed letter dated 26th February, 1997 from Rosamund Walker introducing the book to Waters; and original signed letter from Walker dated 1 April 1997 thanking Waters for her praise of the book. With Fiona Waters' copy of her letter to Rosamund Walker comparing Harry Potter to Charlie Bucket. Only minor blemishes, generally fine condition. Housed together in a custom box. The earliest known copy of Harry Potter ever offered for sale.†References: Fiona Waters quote from conversation by phone with Manhattan Rare Books, March 24, 2023. Errington, Philip W., J.K. Rowling: A Bibliography, rev. ed. (London: Bloomsbury, 2017). Unbound sheets, housed in custom box