One original watermark it is now the most valuable piece of art ever sold for him Harry Potterfor the astronomical sum of £1.9 million (€1.5 million) at auction in the US.

The artwork, which depicts the cover of the first book “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone“, sold for more than three times its expected price, while it was first auctioned in 2001, 6 years before the epic series of books by J. K. Rowling, for £85,750.

“This is the first depiction of the magical world of The Boy Who Lived,” according to Sotheby’s auction house, with the identity of the buyer still unknown.

The artist behind the illustration of the book, O Thomas Taylorwas just 23 in 1997 when he created the iconic image of Harry Potter standing in front of the Hogwarts Express – the train that would take the young wizard to his dream school – using condensed watercolors with black pencil outlines, taking two days to to finish her.

Mr Taylor, who grew up in Wales, was one of the first people to read the manuscript for the original Harry Potter book, which sold millions of copies and spawned a legendary franchise

The difference in auction price between 2001, when only 4 of the 7 books in the series had been released, and today reflects how popular Rowling has become.

“In the intervening decades, it’s been amazing to see not only the end of Harry’s story, but also how his franchise has taken off over time and into younger generations.”