A new "gold rush" is about to hit the historic town but this time the fossickers will be hunting through more than 30,000 rare antiquarian and secondhand books.

About half of Victoria's secondhand booksellers have joined the list of traders heading to the event.

It's one of the largest collections of rare and out-of-print books ever gathered in one place in Victoria.

A prized antiquarian mystery book valued at $800 has arrived in Clunes and was safely deposited in a historic bank vault.

Hepburn Shire councillor and chair of the local organising group Tim Hayes said the event had incited everyone's imagination.

"News of Clunes' plans is also spreading among the growing number of international booktowns, with many offers of support coming our way via the world wide web," he said.

The event is being modelled on the successful booktown concept spreading throughout Europe, which started in the small town of Hay-on-Wye in England in the early 1960s.

"The event is a bit of a market test for us to see how much support there is for an annual or more permanent arrangement," Cr Hayes said.

"It just might be that Clunes, Victoria's first gold town, has the right combination of history, location and community spirit to make it Australia's first Booktown."

Cr Hayes said the community had put a lot of work into the event.

Clunes Primary School will hold its Sunday market day, which will include a variety of stalls and children's activities, on the same day.

An Alice in Wonderland theme will also add to the colour of the day at an alternative fair being hosted by CHANT at the Clunes sports stadium.

Guest speaker Dr Barry Jones will be at Booktown to discuss his new book "A Thinking Reed" at 2pm.

There will also be a Celebration of the Animals facilitated by local celebrant Pamela Adams held at Collins Place at 12.30pm.

Clunes Booktown for a Day will be held on Sunday between 9am and 4pm.