Could you be sitting on a rare book worth thousands?

While books may be well known for nurturing the soul, for the lucky (or prescient) ones among us, the right book can also line our pockets with money, with prices for some sought-after tomes stretching into the hundreds of thousands.

At Douglas Stewart Fine Books located in High Street, Armadale, a particularly notable example of this is a page from the Gutenberg Bible, dating from 1455 and sold by the store for $90,000 in 2011 to the University of Melbourne.

Or from more recent times, Barry Humphries’ book My Gorgeous Life, released in 1989, autographed by Humphries when he visited the Armadale bookstore and retailing for $220 (including GST).

For owner Douglas Stewart, his interest in rare and antiquated books started at the early age of 11, with the books he purchased at opportunity shops and garage sales being resold to universities.

Included in his collection is a book by William Bligh, who sailed with Captain Cook in the Pacific and was best known for the mutiny of the HMS Bounty and also governor of NSW. Completed in 1792 and signed by Bligh, the book is inscribed to his wife Elizabeth.

“Normally, this book would sell for between $15,000 and $20,000, but because of its provenance, the price is $95,000,” says Stewart, who suggests books on Charles Darwin’s Origin of the Species from the 19th century are a good entrée into the market – starting at a couple of hundred dollars.

Many of the books found on Stewart’s bookshelves don’t come with such eye-watering price tags. Those with hindsight could have purchased the book Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling in 1997 for the modest amount of $20. Today, the price is $1000 (including GST).

“You’ll still see this book on people’s bookshelves or if you’re fortunate enough, in a second-hand store or at a market. There are rare books all around us,” says Stewart, whose collection includes books on artist Lindy Lee, architect Zaha Hadid, photographer Bill Henson and on the artist/illustrator Touko Valio Laaksonsen.