Written by Comic books are an eminently collectable item, pieces of art and literature, some of which date back many decades. Limited initial print runs, the stature of the artist, first appearances of famous characters and of course the quality of the comic in question are a few of the standards by which we can judge the value. Whether the item in question sells for an enormous price also depends of course on who is willing to buy it.
In this article we’ll have a look at a few of the most expensive comics of all time. These are the ones which have changed hands privately, or at auction – there may be other collectible comics out there, perfectly preserved but which will never witness a financial transaction and their value will never be known. The three most expensive comics all each feature what are arguably the three most famous comic book characters.
Action Comics #1 – $1,500,000
In March 2010, Action Comics #1 went up for auction via the online ComicConnect
Action Comics #1
auction website. Action Comics #1 is possibly the most sought after issue of any comic – it dates from 1938 and introduces Superman to the reader. It was graded 8.5 (very fine+) on the comic grading scale.
Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster were the creators and the character of Superman had spent several years on the drawing board before being introduced to the public. Read more about Superman’s history here.
Action Comics #1 is so valuable because of it’s condition; of course it has Superman’s first appearance, it’s very old but it when discovered, it had been stored inside a movie magazine for 50 years, meaning it was like new. Co-owner of ComicConnect, Vincent Zurzolo, said that the “the colors are extremely vivid, the whites behind the Action Comics logo are snow white. It’s just a stunning copy – it almost looks brand new.” There are thought to be between 50 and 100 copies of the issue around and this one was bought by an anonymous buyer.
Amazing Fantasy #15 – $1,100,000
More recently, in March 2011, a copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 graded 9.6 (near mint+)
Amazing Fantasy #15
was sold for $1,100,000. The value for this edition is impressive because it’s nowehere near as old as the above comic. It dates from August 1962 but does feature the first appearance of Spiderman.
It’s incredibly well-preserved condition contributed to it’s value but just as importantly this was a Stan Lee piece of work. The legendary jack Kirby also had a hand in the artwork (the cover) but most of the inking was done by Steve Ditko.
The comic features the famous line “With great power comes great responsibility!”
Detective Comics #27 – $1,075,500
To complete our top 3, Detective Comics #27 sold for just less then Amazing Fantasy #15
Detective Comics #27
in March 2010. Heritage Auction Galleries was the auction house responsible and it was graded 8.0 (very fine).
The selling price was briefly a world record until Action Comics #1 came on the market shortly afterwards and it’s value was largely to do with the first appearance of Batman. It dates from May 1939 and it’s publication so close to the release of Action Comics #1 was no coincidence – Batman was created as a rival superhero to Superman. Bob Kane and Bill Finger were the creators.
