Published Date:
22 May 2008
A RARE copy of Sherlock Holmes' first mystery, discovered by two volunteers at Harrogate's Oxfam store, has raised £15,500 for the charity at auction.
A Study in Scarlet, published in Beeton's Christmas Annual for 1887, is believed to be the first print appearance of the legendary sleuth.
Oxfam volunteer Ken Lowe, who found the book amongst donations to the shop, said: "We were absolutely delighted to find it and to be able to research it, and to see that it had a considerable value.
"The result was higher than we expected, even in our most optimistic moments.
"To get what we did was absolutely wonderful. From the outside the book really didn't look like anything at all."
Although telephone bidders took part in the auction, the winning bidder was present on the auction floor. He is a self-confessed "Sherlock fanatic", and lives in the north west of England.
An Oxfam spokesman said: "There was a bidding war going on between bidders in the US and bidders in the UK for the book. It smashed its reserve price."
The annual was discovered by Mr Lowe, a retired maths teacher at Harrogate Grammar School, and fellow volunteer Rosie Beer, when they were examining a pile of donated books.
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Last Updated:
22 May 2008 11:16 AM
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Source:
n/a
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Location:
Harrogate
