First 'Batman' comic sells for record USD 1.5 million
Nov 20, 2020
Washington [US], November 20 : A copy of the first appearance of Batman was sold at auction for USD 1.5 million, becoming the most expensive comic book starring The Dark Knight ever sold.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, prior to the Thursday sale, the highest price ever achieved by 1939's 'Detective Comics' No. 27 was USD 1,075,000, 10 years ago, in another auction from Heritage Auctions.
The copy of 'Detective No. 27' sold was unrestored, but was graded 'fine/very fine 7.0' in terms of quality by Certified Guaranty Company (CGC), becoming one of only two 7.0 copies in the world; only five other unrestored comics have ever graded higher in CGC's history, making the issue particularly noteworthy even before its record-breaking sale.
Barry Sandoval, vice president, Heritage Auctions said, "I'm not at all surprised at the result. After all, this is one of the best copies you will ever see of one of the most important comic books ever published."
Artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger's story "The Case of the Chemical Syndicate," published in Detective Comics No. 27, introduced the world to The Dark Knight.
As per The Hollywood Reporter, the 'Detective Comics' sale came during the first session of Heritage Auction's four-day Comics & Comic Art event, which runs through November 22 and features the so-called 'Alfred Pennyworth Collection', a Batman-centric collection from Randy Lawrence; his Batman No. 2, from 1940, sold for $63,000 during the same session.
While this was the most expensive comic ever sold by Heritage, in 2014, the record holder for most expensive comic went to a 9.0 copy of 'Action Comics' No. 1 - the first appearance of Superman - sold for USD 3.2 million via eBay.
