A copy of the Aberdeen Press & Journal is on sale for £175 - but the high price tag reflects the fact that the paper up for grabs is the very first edition from 1748.

And the cover price was a world away from the price ticket at the Aberdeen bookshop where it is on sale, with the 18th century paper retailing at 2d.

The paper was a weekly then, and this example is dated Tuesday, December 29, 1747 to January 5, 1748.

Its owner, bookseller David Fleming, acquired it from another dealer.

He said: "It was a real find. And it's in quite good condition considering its age.

"There were only about 500 copies sold at the time so there can't have been that many which survived.

"It certainly doesn't look anything like the Press and Journal of today. It is only one printed sheet of paper, folded over to make four pages.

"And there are no headlines or local news stories. The only picture is a Bon Accord woodblock on page one."

Its news is lifted from the national papers of the time, and include reports on European battles, but next to no local stories.

The only mention of Aberdeen is an appeal for stolen money - £30 - to be returned to the paper's owners.

"Whoever brings (the notes) back to the publisher of this paper shall have two guineas reward, and no questions asked," it reads.

The newspaper caused interest at this year's annual Aberdeen Book Fair, with an inquiry from the paper's parent company, Aberdeen Journals Ltd.

But it failed to sell and is available for inspection at Grampian Books, South Monkshill.

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