A rare, cloth-bound first edition of Emily Brontë's *Wuthering Heights* (1847) is coming up for auction at Christie’s this month, with an estimate of up to £600,000. The copy, one of only a handful surviving in its original binding, is being sold by the trustees of an undisclosed aristocratic private collection and will be displayed at Christie’s London from 26 June before the Exceptional Sale on 30 June. Christie’s rare books specialist Mark Wiltshire notes that the last time such a copy appeared at auction was in 1908, making this a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for collectors.
The sale matters because it highlights the extraordinary rarity and cultural significance of the original physical object—the cloth binding, printing errors, and historical context—rather than just the literary text. The first edition, poorly printed in a run of no more than 250 copies, has become a coveted artifact for both private and public collectors, with only six known copies in public collections worldwide. The auction also underscores the enduring legacy of *Wuthering Heights*, which has inspired countless adaptations and remains a landmark of English literature.