And finally… shock outcome

Auction house Christie’s estimated the book would sell for $200,000 to $300,000. However, by selling for nearly four to six times as much, the book set a record for the highest price paid for a published work by a woman, according to Fine Books Magazine.

The copy was one of 500 originally printed anonymously by author Mary Shelley in 1818. It comes in three volumes and features the original hardcover boards.

The copy also includes a preface by her husband, poet Percy Shelley, along with a dedication to her father, William Godwin, a journalist and political philosopher, CNN reports.