"Please don't buy it!": Author JK Rowling is calling on fans not to buy the piece of work. Photo / Getty Images
"Please don't buy it!": Author JK Rowling is calling on fans not to buy the piece of work. Photo / Getty Images
JK Rowling is appealing to thieves to return a rare and extremely valuable prequel she handwrote on a postcard, after it was stolen from a home in Birmingham.
The 800-word piece was written on a piece of A5 card and sold for £25,000 (NZ$47,000) at a charity auction nine yearsago at Sotheby's, the Daily Mail reports.
But it has been revealed the postcard was stolen along with jewellery from a property in Howard Road, Kings Heath in Birmingham during a break-in between April 13 and 24.
The owner of the prequel, who does not wish to be identified, thanked JK Rowling and the police for raising awareness about the theft.
The document's owner said: "I was in Bangkok and I got an email from my sister to give her a call urgently.
Investigating officer Police Constable Paul Jauncey said: "The only people who will buy this unique piece are true Harry Potter fans.
"We are appealing to anyone who sees, or is offered this item for sale, to contact police."
Responding to news of the theft, JK Rowling retweeted a message issued by West Midlands Police appealing for information and featuring a picture of the short story.
The writer said: "PLEASE DON'T BUY THIS IF YOU'RE OFFERED IT. Originally auctioned for @englishpen, the owner supported writers' freedoms by bidding for it."
The prequel was among several works donated by authors, including Sebastian Faulks and Doris Lessing, to an auction held in 2008 to raise funds for English PEN, which promotes understanding through literature, and Dyslexia Action.