Four CGC-graded Comic Books Each Sell for Over $200,000

Four rare comic books, all graded by Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®), have each sold for $225,000 or more in a recent ComicLink auction. The books were sold as part of ComicLink’s Featured Winter Auction, which was open for bidding March 1-9, 2022.

The top four sellers were a Detective Comics #27 (CCG Restored Grade 7.0) that sold for $293,000; a Suspense Comics #3 (CGC Universal Grade 6.5) that sold for $280,000; a Batman #1 (CGC Universal Grade 3.0) that sold for $230,000; and an Amazing Fantasy #15 (CGC Universal Grade 6.5) that sold for $225,000.

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Published in 1939, Detective Comics #27 features the first appearance of Batman. In the original comics, Batman was a much darker and more violent vigilante who carried a gun. The character lightened up in the Comics Code Authority era of the Silver Age, but trended back to his dark knight roots in the 1980s.

Suspense Comics #3 is one of the most popular non-superhero comics ever published. Featuring a classic Schomburg Bondage/World War II cover from 1944, the recent sale for $280,000 far outpaced a previous sale reported at $173,275 in 2015.

From 1940, Batman #1 features the first appearance of the villains Joker and Catwoman. This comic is consistently featured among the most expensive comics, and even comics in lower grades are highly desirable.

The copy of Amazing Fantasy #15, the first appearance of Spider-Man from 1962 by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, sold for $225,000. Amazing Fantasy #15 set a new benchmark for comic books last year when a copy sold for a record $3.6 million, eclipsing the longtime champion, Action Comics #1.

In all, the ComicLink action featured 956 classic comics, including:

• a Captain America #1 graded CGC 5.0 that sold for $170,016
• a Fantastic Four #5 graded CGC 9.2 that sold for $160,111
• a Marvel Mystery Comics #4 graded CGC 7.5 that sold for $160,000
• an X-Men #1 graded CGC 8.5 that sold for $125,000
• a Detective Comics graded CGC 4.5 that sold for $110,000
• a Tales of Suspense #39 graded CGC 7.5 that sold for $60,888
• a Captain America #3 graded CGC 4.5 (Signature Series, signed by Stan Lee) that sold for $47,000
• an Incredible Hulk #1 graded CGC 4.5 that sold for $43,044
• an Avengers #1 graded CGC 8.5 that sold for $35,900
• a Tomb of Dracula #10 graded CGC 9.8 that sold for $35,000
• an Amazing Spider-Man #1 graded CGC 6.0 (Signature Series signed by Stan Lee) that sold for $33,111.