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March 8, 2009 / 11:39 PM

Potter book fetches $19,120 at auction

Author J.K. Rowling laughs while on stage during the Annual Meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association which followed the 2008 Harvard University Commencements Exercises on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts on June 5, 2008. (UPI Photo/Matthew Healey)

1 of 2 | Author J.K. Rowling laughs while on stage during the Annual Meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association which followed the 2008 Harvard University Commencements Exercises on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts on June 5, 2008. (UPI Photo/Matthew Healey) | License Photo

DALLAS, March 8 (UPI) -- A soft-cover copy of the first Harry Potter book sold for $19,120 in a rare books auction in Dallas, the auction company said Sunday.

The 1997 first edition of "Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone" is one of only 200 copies of the first printing issued in illustrated wrappers by the London publisher Bloomsbury, a statement said.

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The book came with an illustrated card signed by author J.K. Rowling, Heritage Auction Galleries said in the statement.

The winning bidder Friday is from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and is a collector of vintage comic books.

The previous record for a softbound copy of the first edition was $10,750 Heritage Auction Galleries said.

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