HARRY Potter’s magic hold over the imagination shows no sign of loosening, with a battered first edition copy of JK Rowling’s first book selling at auction last week for a ‘wand-erful’ £27,500.

Auction goers at the London sale were left spellbound as bids for the former Wyedean School pupil’s work kept rising.

The ultra-rare copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone is deemed so valuable because it is one of just 500 worldwide that contains a typo on the 53rd page.

In a list of equipment the young wizard needs to buy for his first year at Hogwarts, “1 wand” appears twice, alongside other shopping items including a cauldron, telescope and a set of brass scales.

Head of Printed Books and Manuscripts at Chiswick Auctions, Clive Moss, said: “I don’t think there is anything magical about the typo, it’s just human error.

“But it is significant because it can only be found in the first edition, first issue copies.”

He added: “Harry Potter is a unique phenomenon in that a book which cost just pounds two decades ago is now worth tens of thousands. If you were buying this book in good condition from a speciality bookseller, it could cost £50,000 or more.”

The rare copy up for auction was once a library book, as is true for most first issue copies, added Clive.

As well as an ink library stamp printed on the back of the title-page, the book retains the original pictorial boards and page ends.

Clive said: “It is an ex-library copy that has been very carefully restored and re-laminated to a high standard.

“Many Harry Potter books I have sold are completely battered, but this is a fair-looking copy.”

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, originally published on June 26, 1997 is the first of seven books in the saga, which is the best-selling book series in history.

JK Rowling attended Wyedean in Sedbury, where her mother Anne worked as a science lab technician, from 1976 to 1983, and lived at the Grade II-listed Church Cottage in Tutshill.

She is thought to have based some of her characters on people she knew in her school days, including chemistry teacher John Nettleship, who is believed to have been the basis for potion-making Professor Snape.

Earlier this year, her former school jokingly offered to sell the ‘worn out carpet’ covered in chewing gum which she used to walk on.

It said it was looking to replace the decades-old mat once trodden by the superstar author in response to news of a Harry Potter superfan collecting nearly 4,000 pieces of memorabilia.

The school posted: “Because of chronic underfunding in education we still have the worn out carpet in our top corridor, originally walked on by @jk_rowling when she was a student here, with original gum attached we believe.

“Happy to consider any reasonable offer towards a replacement, no time wasters.”