The original watercolour illustration for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone sold for a record-breaking US$1.9 million on Wednesday, becoming the most valuable Harry Potter item ever sold at auction.
Thomas Taylor’s artwork, which sold at Sotheby’s in New York, was featured on the covers of the first edition of the 1997 novel. Prior to the auction, its price estimate was between US$400,000 and US$600,000—the highest pre-sale estimate ever placed on a Harry Potter-related item.
The illustration was first offered at auction in 2001 at Sotheby’s in London, where it sold for a then-record £85,750 (US$121,431 at the time).
Taylor was just 23 and working in a bookshop when he received his first professional commission to create a cover for J.K. Rowling ’s first novel. Taylor came up with the first-ever depiction of Harry Potter, which has now become the universal image for the iconic character.
The previous record for a Harry Potter auction item was set in 2021 when an unsigned first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone sold for US$421,000 at Heritage Auctions in Dallas. A handwritten copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard by Rowling sold in a charity auction at Sotheby’s in 2007 for £1.95 million, however the copy had been produced specifically to raise money for the author’s charity, Lumos, which supports the end of the institutionalisation of children worldwide.
The cover art sold as part of the library of Dr. Rodney P. Swantko, a significant collection of 19th- and 20th-century English and American literature, according to Sotheby’s.
The sports-car maker delivered 279,449 cars last year, down from 310,718 in 2024.
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The sports-car maker delivered 279,449 cars last year, down from 310,718 in 2024.
Porsche car deliveries fell 10% in 2025 as demand was hit by a slowdown in luxury spending in China and as it ceased production of its 718 Boxster and 718 Cayman models through the year.
The German luxury sports-car maker said Friday that it delivered 279,449 cars in the year, down from 310,718 in 2024.
The company had a tumultuous year as it contended with a stuttering transition to electric vehicles and a tough Chinese market, while the Trump administration’s automotive tariffs presented a further headwind.
Deliveries in its largest sales region of North America were virtually flat at 86,229, but continued challenges in China meant deliveries in the country dropped 26% to 41,938 vehicles.
Automakers have faced intense competition in China, sparking a prolonged price war as rivals cut prices to win customers, while a lengthy property market slump and economic-growth concerns in the country has also led to buyers pulling back on luxury spending.
“Key reasons for the decline remain the challenging market conditions, particularly in the luxury segment, and the very intense competition in the Chinese market, especially for all-electric models,” the company said.
Other German brands including Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz have all recently reported that the challenging Chinese market hit demand last year.
In Europe, Porsche deliveries fell 13% to 66,340 cars excluding its home market of Germany, while German deliveries dropped 16%.
The company cut guidance several times last year as it warned of hits from U.S. import tariffs, investments in new combustion engines and hybrid models amid the slow uptake of EVs, and the competitive situation in China.
Porsche also last year announced plans to scale back its EV ambitions and instead expand its lineup with more gas-powered and plug-in hybrid models than it had originally planned.
However, in its statement Friday, the company said it increased its share of electrified-vehicle deliveries in the year. Around 34% of vehicles delivered worldwide were electrified, an increase of 7.4 percentage points on year, with about 22% all-electric vehicles and 12% plug-in hybrids.
That leaves its global share of fully-electric vehicles at the upper end of its target range of 20% to 22% for 2025.
In Europe, for the first time in 2025, more electrified vehicles than purely combustion engine vehicles were delivered.
The Macan topped the delivery charts in the year, while the 911 reached a record high with 51,583 deliveries worldwide, it said.
Porsche said it is investing in its three-pronged powertrain strategy and will continue to respond to increasing demand for personalization requests from customers.
“We have a clear focus for 2026,” Sales and Marketing Chief Matthias Becker said. “We want to manage supply and demand in accordance with our ‘value over volume’ strategy.
“At the same time, we are realistically planning our volume for 2026 following the end of production of the 718 and Macan with combustion engines.”
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