Last Christmas, three brothers discovered a rare Great Depression-era copy of the first Superman comic in pristine condition in their late mother’s SF attic. It just sold for $9 million, making it one of the most valuable comic books in the world.
As the Chronicle reports, the brothers, who chose to keep their names out of the press, were cleaning out their late mother’s attic last year when they unearthed the comic from a box full of old newspapers. Per the Associated Press, their mother purchased the comic with her sibling in San Francisco, along with a few other rare comics back in 1939, when she was nine years old.
The book’s spine was miraculously still intact, the corners were crisp, and the colors still vivid, per AP. Its near-mint condition, which received a 9-out-of-10 score from the Certified Guaranty Company, is largely thanks to the Bay Area’s mild climate, per the Chronicle.
Last Thursday, the comic broke records when it was purchased by an anonymous collector for a whopping $9.12 million through Heritage Auctions in Dallas, Texas. Previously, the most expensive copy of the first Superman comic went for $5.3 million in 2022, per the Chronicle.
“‘Superman No. 1’ is a milestone in pop culture history,” said Lon Allen, vice president of Heritage Auctions, in a statement. “This copy is not only in unprecedented condition, but it has a movie-worthy story behind it.”
The brothers said they recalled their mother mentioning the box of rare comics over the years, but they had never seen it until they put her house up for sale and began looking over her collection of heirlooms, per AP. The discovery prompted the brothers to contact Allen, who flew out to San Francisco to inspect the rare ‘Superman No. 1’ comic and get it appraised.
“It was just in an attic, sitting in a box, could have easily been thrown away, could've easily been destroyed in a thousand different ways,” Allen told AP. “A lot of people got excited because it's just every factor in collecting that you could possibly want all rolled into one.”
The three brothers, who are in their 50s and 60s, opted to keep their identities private due to their newfound fortune, per AP. “This isn't simply a story about old paper and ink,” one brother said in a statement from Heritage Auctions. “This was never just about a collectible. This is a testament to memory, family and the unexpected ways the past finds its way back to us.”
On a related note, the Chronicle notes that comics fans can meet some legendary creators at the annual FanExpo convention taking place this Friday through Sunday.
Image: Hulton Archive/Getty Images
