YORK, Pa. – A super-clean, CGC 9.6 copy of Amazing Spider-Man #1 (March 1963) – one of only five of its type and grade known to exist – set off a bidding war at Hake’s July 25-26 auction of pop culture memorabilia, rocketing to an astonishing final price of $520,380. The comic had been displayed at Comic-Con in San Diego and attracted huge interest from fans, a sure sign of what was to come.
NEW YORK — Since they were first published, comic books have been mostly male-centric. They were and still are, created primarily by boys and men for just that audience: boys and men. In today’s collector marketplace, rare vintage comic books starring Batman, Superman, the Green Lantern and Spider-Man can bring six- and even seven-figure prices. But one would be hard pressed to find a comic book featuring a female character on the cover that hits the five- or six-figure price range — not yet, anyway.
CRANSTON, R.I. – Anyone who doubts the soaring popularity of Magic: The Gathering (MTG) trading cards should look no further than Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers’ Winter Comic, TCG (Trading Card Games) & Toy auction slated for Saturday, February 26, starting at 10 am Eastern. The top five lots – all MTG cards – have a combined high estimate of $135,000. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
NEW YORK — If you are a serious comic book collector, your Holy Grail is the issue that features the first appearance of a character. People pay big bucks for issues where a beloved superhero or villain makes their debut. The gold standard has been issues such as Action Comics #1, which saw the debut of Superman; Detective Comics #27, which introduced Batman; and Amazing Fantasy #15, in which the comics-reading world met Spiderman. A host of less heavy-hitting characters are prompting collectors to pay robust prices for their debut issues, too. In June 2021, Heritage Auctions sold a copy of Marvel Spotlight #5, which contains the first appearance of Ghost Rider, for $264,000, making it the most expensive comic from the 1970s.
DALLAS – This auction is set to stun.
Fifty-two years after NBC canceled Star Trek, one of its most sought-after – and rarest – pieces of prop-culture comes to auction for the first time: a detailed, ready-for-its-close-up Type-2 phaser. The pistol making its auction debut at Heritage Auctions during the July 16-18 Entertainment and Music Memorabilia event is isn’t one of the foam vacuum-formed plastic props handed out to redshirts, but one of only two original-series “hero” phasers known to have survived the show’s three-season run. This is something right out of Captain Kirk’s arsenal, down to the last detachable detail.