A very special edition of Marvel Comics #1, the issue that started it all for Marvel, just sold for nearly $2.5 million to an anonymous buyer.
An incredibly rare copy of the comic that started it all for Marvel, Marvel Comics #1, just sold for nearly $2.5 million.
ComicConnect, an online auction comic auction business based in New York, sold an issue of Marvel Comics #1 to an unknown buyer for $2,427,777.65. According to the New York Times, the buyer, who is remaining anonymous at this time, is a comic collector in their 40s who lives outside the United States. “He loved the condition of the copy and the story of how it was found,” ComicConnect chief executive officer, co-founder and owner Stephen Fishler said.
Fishler said the reason the comic sold for such a high price is because the issue is a “pay copy” — meaning it was used to record the payments that the publisher owed the illustrator. ComicConnect’s website explains, “It is the original copy used by publisher Lloyd Jacquet to record payments to the artists that contributed to the book. Hand-written notations detailing reimbursement to legendary artist Frank Paul for his work on this iconic cover are evident on the title logo and illustration. Further records are also noted in pencil on Pg 7.”
Marvel Comics #1 was published in 1939 by Timely Comics, which was initially run by Martin Goodman. The issue was the very first comic book ever published by the publisher. In 1951, Timely Comics became known as Atlas Comics before it officially evolved into Marvel Comics, now one of the most popular comic book companies ever formed, in 1961. The 68-page issue of Marvel Comics #1 contains the first appearances for a handful of popular Marvel superheroes, including a pre-Fantastic Four Human Torch and Namor the Sub-Mariner.
Despite being 80 years old, ComicConnect said the issue was in “incredible, newsstand-fresh condition” and that it earned a 9.2 grade from Certified Guaranty Company (CGC). “[The issue] is one of the most important, valuable and rare comics of all time, and is the first-ever Timely/Marvel publication, a major cultural landmark,” the company posted. “…Any Golden Age key in this condition would be a major find, let alone one of such historic importance. The front cover is remarkably well preserved and clean, and the colors are undeniably crisp, perfectly highlighting the otherworldly appearance of the Human Torch as he closes in on his foe.”
Last year, ComicsCollect sold an issue of 1940’s Batman #1 for $1.2 million. Other copies of the same issue have sold for around $2.2 million depending on the CGC’s grade. “Vintage comics have always been great investments,” Fishler said at the time. “Values are increasing decade by decade. But since the pandemic began, we’re seeing the same heightened activity we saw during the 2008 recession, when investors flocked to comics as a solid alternative to stocks.”
Marvel Comics #1 was made by Ben Thompson, Carl Burgos, Al Anders, Bill Everett and Paul Gustavson.
Source: New York Times, ComicConnect
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