A copy of DC’s Action Comics #1, featuring Superman’s first appearance, was sold at auction for a record-breaking $6 million. The 1938 comic book, graded at a “Very Fine+” 8.5, is in remarkably good shape for an 85-year-old piece of comic history. The sale was conducted by Heritage Auctions, and the comic’s price surpassed the previous record holder, a copy of Superman #1, which had a grade of 8.0 and sold for $5.3 million at a private sale in 2022.
The comic book is exceedingly rare, with just 78 copies tracked by CGC, the service that authenticates and grades the condition of comic books. The service believes there are around 100 in existence in total out of 200,000 initially printed by National Allied Publications, a forerunner of DC Comics. The book, from creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, is arguably the most important in superhero comic book history.
This sale will go down in history as one of the most highly-priced comic auctions of all time, but it’s far from the first collectible to go for millions of dollars. A copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 went for $3.6 million in 2021, and last year, someone purchased a model X-Wing for $3.135 million. As for video game collectibles, a 2021 auction saw someone buy a copy of Super Mario Bros. 3 for $156,000.
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