The obsession with J.K. Rowling’s ‘Harry Potter’ series of books exposes owners of rare Harry Potter memorabilia and artefacts to the risk of theft. British police confirmed recently that a unique handwritten draft, written by the author on a postcard, has been stolen. The draft features an 800-word short story written three years before the publication of the first book of the Harry Potter series.
The rare postcard was stolen from an office of English PEN, the founding centre of PEN International – an organisation that promotes freedom of expression and facilitates intellectual co-operation and understanding among writers. English PEN had purchased the card in an auction in 2008 for GBP 25,000 (USD 32,152), with the aim of putting it on display in a private museum to be established in the future.
The police have turned to the public and appealed to Harry Potter fans to help find and recover the rare prequel. The seven books of Harry Potter series have sold more than 450 million copies in 80 languages around the world, while the film series earned more than USD 7 billion globally.
