We’re back with another look at our Chartbusters!
These are the comics that sold for the highest prices in the month of January. There was a big Heritage auction in January and sales from that auction dominate our Chartbusters list for the month. Let’s dive deep to determine what these sales tell us about the market for the comics every collector wishes they could own.
Promising Signs for Golden Age DC
The hot streak continues for restored copies of Action Comics #1. After last month’s sale of a restored 9.0 copy in the ComicConnect auction, a 6.5 graded restored copy of the first appearance of Superman sold in the January 12 Heritage auction for $384,000 and came in number one on our Chartbusters list for January. That’s up 28% over the previous sale in 2021. While some see the purple label and refuse to bid, clearly others see value in the restored copies. There are few who can spend the price of a house on a comic book, but there are fewer still who can afford the millions it would take to get their hands on an unrestored copy.
A 4.0 graded copy of Suspense Comics #3 sold in the January 12 auction for $156,000. It’s only the second Universal graded copy to sell in the past year and the highest grade offered up in an auction in nearly five years. It’s also the first sale in the grade. As such, comps are hard to come by. However, consider that a 5.0 last sold in 2020 for $52,800 and it’s hard not to mark this as a big upswing for this book.
The first appearance of Robin in Detective Comics #38 set an all-time record with the sale of an 8.0 graded copy for $132,000. That beats out the previous record holder – a 9.4 graded copy that sold way back in 2005 for $126,500. The 8.0 grade that sold last month is in the top 10% of the CGC census and only that lone 9.4 and a 9.0 graded copy rank higher.
A 6.5 graded copy of More Fun Comics #52 sold for $108,000 in the auction. While at first glance it looks like good news for the Spectre’s first appearance as it was up a whopping 154% over the previous sale in the grade back in 2013, there are definitely some warning lights. A 6.0 graded copy sold in October for $132,000. Could the luster be falling from this Golden Age favorite?
Not So Promising Signs for Silver Age Marvel
The auction also included a 6.0 Amazing Fantasy #15 selling for $69,000. While that’s up a hair from the $66,000 sale in the November Heritage auction, it’s down 9% from the $75,000 sale in the September Heritage auction. All of those prices are down considerably from the 2021 peak of $96,000 and a later peak of $93,088 in 2022. While the leveling of the trend curve is promising, it bears watching to see what the next 6.0 will sell for.
A 9.8 Fantastic Four #48 signed by Stan Lee sold for $69,000. A Stan Lee signed 9.8 sold in 2021 for $144,000 and it’s been downhill since, with each sale going for less than the previous. While there are only five 9.8 graded Signature Series copies in the CGC census, collectors are no longer paying a premium price for them. Thus the 52% drop in just three-and-a-half years.
Unique Sales
Some books sold in the January 12 auction that you just don’t see everyday and are worth highlighting. A 6.5 graded copy of All-Negro Comics #1 sold for $19,200. It’s the second highest price ever paid for this issue, only surpassed by an 8.0 going for $21,000 in a 2021 ComicConnect auction.
A 7.0 Peanuts #1, published by United Features Syndicate in 1954 and the characters’ first solo comic, sold for $18,000. The sale marks a significant uptick in the grade since a 7.0 last sold in a 2020 Heritage auction for $9,600. It’s also only the fifth sale since a 7.5 sold for a record price of $24,000 in 2023.
Finally, an 8.0 graded copy of Archie #50 went for a record price of $14,400. That’s $6,000 more than the previous sale of an 8.0 in 2020. There is a lone 9.0 in the CGC census. If it ever comes up for auction, it could be a huge sale.
