Most expensive Harry Potter memorabilia

The most expensive piece of Harry Potter memorabilia is the original cover art for JK Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, which sold for $1,920,000 (£1.5 m) at Sotheby’s in New York City, New York, USA, on 26 June 2024.

The 1997 pencil and watercolour illustration by Thomas Taylor was estimated to sell for at least $400,000 (£316,264).

The four-way bidding war lasted nearly 10 minutes. The buyer’s identity has not been revealed.

Taylor created the artwork in 1997 when he was only 23 years old. He was working at a children’s bookshop in Cambridge, UK, when Bloomsbury commissioned him for the job. He was one of the first people to read the book’s manuscript.

The picture captures a young Harry Potter looking bemused as he gets ready to board the Hogwarts Express from the enchanted platform 9 ¾.