New Record Price for Comic Book with Batman

Batman’s debut story sells for record $1.74 million. A Detective Comics featuring the debut of Batman sold at Goldin Auctions in May of this year for $1.74 million, a new record for a comic book starring the superhero. The previous record for this issue was $1.5 million, sold at Heritage Auctions in 2020. This copy is one of only 36 Detective Comics #27 known to exist. The Batman saga began modestly in 1939 as a six-page story in Detective Comics #27. Drawn and written by Bob Kane and Bill Finger, “The Case of the Chemical Syndicate” introduced the world to Bruce Wayne and his superhero alter ego, The Batman. His appeal was immediate, and Batman has become a cultural icon. The Dark Knight rises!

 

Comic Book Bids Soar

A mint-condition Detective Comics No. 140 sold for $456,000 in a June 2021 Heritage auction. The comic was part of a grouping of high-grade Golden Age comic books bought by a teenager in the 1940s. The 5,000 comics are called the Promise Collection and are being in several auctions, the first of which totaled $7.1 million in sales. The collection was owned by a young man killed in World War II. He made his brother promise that he would save his comics, which the brother did for eight decades.

 

 

 

Brother Keeps His Promise: Small Portion of Comic Collection Sells for $7.1 Million 

A portion of the comics in the Promise Collection, a grouping of high-grade Golden Age comic books bought by a teenager in the 1940s, sold at a June 7 Heritage auction for a total of $7.1 million.

The total was for just 181 comics from the 5,000-plus comic books that make up the Promise Collection. The comic book collection was owned by a young man who made his brother promise to keep the comics together while he was fighting in the war. He never returned, but the brother kept the collection together and added some of his own. All the comics will be sold by Heritage Auctions throughout this year and next.

“We’re just blown away,” said Heritage Auctions Vice-President Lon Allen moments after the session closed Friday. “Every single book was over the top — and deservedly so.”

Almost every book in this first sale shattered pre-auction expectations. Prices included: A mint-condition Detective Comics No. 140, $456,000; a Phantom Lady No. 17, considered one of the most iconic of the Golden Age, also brought $456,000; Captain America Comics No. 36, with Captain America yanking Hitler out of his convertible, sold for $204,000. Another Captain America Comics, No. 74 with Red Skull and Captain America, also sold for $204,000.

Photos:  Heritage Auctions