Handwritten Tales of Beedle the Bard up for Auction

A copy of the companion book Tales of Beedle the Bard (featured in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and written by author J.K. Rowling) will be auctioned by Sotheby’s on December 13th. This is one of the six copies handwritten and illustrated by JKR to be gifted to those who helped Harry become a reality.

This copy of Beedle the Bard is dedicated to editor Barry Cunningham, publisher of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (or Sorcerer’s Stone for those in the United States). An inscription reads:

“To Barry, the man who thought an overlong novel about a boy wizard in glasses might just sell”

Beedle the Bard contains five tales that are considered classics among wizarding families in the Harry Potter series, including “The Tale of the Three Brothers”, which is the origin story of the Deathly Hallows that are so central to the final installment of the Potter books.

Sotheby’s posted an auction preview of a “wizardly storyteller” reading from Jo’s handwritten manuscript:

This is not the first time one of the precious Beedle the Bard manuscripts has been auctioned by Sotheby’s. In late 2007, a copy was put up for auction and was expected to sell for £50,000 (US$77,000). The book ultimately sold for  £1.95 million (US$3 million), with all proceeds going to J.K. Rowling’s charity Lumos (then The Children’s Voice).

Scholastic continues to donate twenty percent of the retail sales price of every copy of Beedle the Bard sold today to Lumos. A new box set “Hogwarts Library” including The Tales of Beedle the Bard, Quidditch Through the Ages, and a vamped up edition of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them goes on sale March 14, 2017 and is available for preorder now on Amazon.