The first comic book to feature Captain America has sold for a whopping $3.1 million at auction, making it one of the most valuable comic books in history.
Captain America Comics No. 1 was purchased Thursday as part of Heritage Auctions’ comics and comic art event that concludes Sunday. Published in March 1941, the highly coveted copy spanned 45 pages, and introduced the world to Steve Rogers, his sidekick Sgt. James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes, and the super villain Red Skull.
According to Heritage Auctions, the comic book was given a near-mint grading of 9.4 from the Certified Guaranty Company. It’s reported there are only three known copies of the issue that have received a 9.4 grading. The CGC states there is one 9.8-graded version somewhere in the world, but it has yet to hit any auctions.
Bidding began at $1.825 million, but quickly jumped to $2.2 million. At the end, an anonymous bidder secured the comic for $3,120,000, making it the fourth-highest amount ever paid for a comic at auction. HA reports Superman and Spider-Man are the only other superheroes whose comic book debuts have sold for over $3 million. A 1962 9.6-graded copy of Amazing Fantasy No. 15, which introduced Spider-Man, sold for $3.6 million last year. An 8.5-graded issue of 1938’s Action Comics No. 1, which marked Superman’s first appearance sold for $3.25 a year ago. A 9.0-graded version of that same issue fetched $3.2 million in 2014, while a 6.0-graded version was purchased for $3.18 million
Captain America was created by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon and for Timely Comics, which would eventually become Marvel Comics. The cover of the debut issue shows Cap fighting Nazis and their leader, Adolf Hitler. The issue was published nine months before the United States entered WWII.