The Promise Collection is a pedigree collection from the 1940s and 1950s that had been stored in an attic for over 50 years.
CGC designates famous collections of comic books as "pedigrees." It's exceptionally difficult for a collection to be designated as a pedigree. In general, the collection must have: (1) belonged to an original owner; (2) vintage material (1966 or earlier); (3) a large number of comics (1,000 comics or more); and (4) high-grade issues (9.2 or better). CGC has provided this designation to only 61 collections. CGC-graded pedigree comics come with that striking and rarely seen gold label.
The copy of Detective Comics #118 that PWCC has up for bids comes from the Promise Collection, the latest pedigree collection that CGC has recognized. The story behind the Promise Collection, a collection of 5,000 Golden Age comics, is a tragic one. Junie, a young boy who grew up reading, collecting, and preserving comics during the 1940s, enlisted in the U.S. Army with his brother, Robert, to fight during the Korean War.
During the War, Junie asked Robert that, should anything happen to him, Robert would take care of his brother's beloved comic book collection. Robert promised Junie he would do so. Junie, unfortunately, was killed in action at the young age of 21. When Robert returned from the War, he fulfilled his promise to his younger brother by meticulously storing his brother's collection in his attic for over half a century. This collection, one of the most valuable collections ever found, surfaced in 2021.
Heritage Auctions sold many items from the Promise Collection back in 2021. If you'd like to learn more about those sales check out this blog from one of my colleagues, Lauren Sisselman, here at GoCollect.
PWCC is asking for $96,000 for Detective Comics #118 CGC 9.8 (1946).
While Detective Comics #118 doesn't contain any first appearances, it is highly sought after since it's a Golden Age book with a rare Joker cover appearance. It's a little difficult to predict how much this copy would sell for, since this book is truly unique. Not only is this copy the ONLY 9.8 in existence, it also comes from one of the most famous collections in the world.
To get some sense of just how rare this book is, there are only nine copies of this graded 9.0 or better. The last time a 9.6 sold was way back in 2005 for $10,925.
This same book, however, did sell on Heritage Auctions just over two years ago in June 2021 for a whopping $84,000. While it did sell at the height of the "comic boom," this book is so rare that this sale was likely immune to the ups and downs of the overall comic book market. PWCC is asking for $96,000 but is also accepting offers.
Importantly, the asking price includes the 20% buyer's premium (or roughly $19,200 depending on the final sales price). Considering that this book was listed over five weeks ago (on July 19th), it appears that the asking price of $96,000 is a bit too high and that the consignor would probably consider offers below asking price.
I'll be watching this sale closely to see if it serves as a barometer for the broader comic book market. If it sells for $84,000 or less, it may be yet another indicator that we still haven't hit the floor of the current bear market.
How much do you think this Detective Comics #118 will sell for? Let us know in the comments section below!
