J K Rowling: Handwritten book fetches nearly $4 Million
Posted By:
Marjorie20032
Posted:
December, 14 2007
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 J K Rowling: Handwritten book fetches nearly $4 Million
At an auction on December 13, Thursday, a book of fairy tales created, handwritten and illustrated by J K Rowling, had been sold for £1.95 million. London art agent Hazlitt, Gooden and Fox, the buyer, now has one of only seven copies of "The Tales of Beedle the Bard," which is leather bound with silver mounts. The book (which previously featured as a fictional plot device in the last of J K Rowling's Harry Potter novels) had originally been expected to sell for about £50,000.
The price money will benefit The Children's Voice, a charity co-founded in 2005 by J K Rowling and Baroness Nicholson, a member of Britain's House of Lords. The standing-room-only crowd at Sotheby's auction house applauded as bidding topped the £1 million mark.
Harry Potter related items are more on offer in pre-Christmas auctions of children's books and toys in the U.K. next week.
Headlining Christie's Dec. 19 sale of children's books is a set of first editions of the first four Potter novels -- "The Philosopher's Stone" (1997), "The Chamber of Secrets" (1998), "The Prisoner of Azkaban" (1999) and "The Goblet of Fire" (2000) -- each signed or inscribed by J K Rowling. The set is expected to fetch £30,000-£50,000.
"Classic children's books usually have a steady rise in price, but Potter is a phenomenon," says Christie's book specialist Nicholas Worskett. " 'The Philosopher's Stone' cost £9.99 when it first came out. We sold a first edition in November for £17,000 and it wasn't even signed."
Other highlights of the Christie's Dec. 19 book sale include one of the great 19th-century classics, Lewis Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" (1866), in a first published edition (estimate: £3,000-£5,000); and Beatrix Potter's "The Tailor of Gloucester" (1903), to be sold with a letter from the author discussing the appeal to both children and adults of her hero Peter Rabbit (£5,000-£8,000).
 At an entertainment memorabilia auction in London the same day, Christie's will offer animation images, or cels, from some of Walt Disney's most famous children's films. The first Disney animated feature, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937), is represented by a cel of Prince Charming lifting Snow White onto a white horse as the dwarfs cheer (estimate: £4,000-£6,000).
Bonhams on Monday will hold a huge, 1,417-lot Christmas sale featuring toy cars, trains, soldiers, dolls, puppets and teddy bears at its U.K. showrooms at Knowle on the outskirts of Birmingham.
"Toys for boys," including trains, cars and soldiers, are selling especially well now, with exceptional pieces going for £200 to £1,500, says Leigh Gotch, Bonhams toy department director. "Collectors can be 18 or 80."
Mr. Gotch expects that a toy soldier set of the U.S. Marine Corps band in full dress uniform and headed by a drum major with a movable arm (1950) will do well on Monday (estimate: £500-£700).
Demand for teddy bears and dolls is down at the moment, he adds, with collectors less interested in the lower end of the market (under £500) and focusing on more expensive collectibles (£500- £5,000). "They have to be rare and in great condition," says Mr. Gotch. Bonhams on Monday will feature a musical teddy bear from the 1930s (estimate: £500-£800).  |
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