CGC-certified ‘No. 1’ from Action Comics #1 Cover Sells for Over $7,000

Have you ever dreamed of owning a piece of comic book history? That’s just what one buyer got when they paid $7,101 for a small but mighty piece of the cover of an Action Comics #1. The “No. 1” box from the iconic book’s cover was certified by Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®) as authentic and offered in a ComicConnect Auction on March 15.

Published in 1938, Action Comics #1 is the first appearance of Superman and considered the holiest of grail comics. In April 2021, a copy graded CGC 8.5 sold for $3.25 million — the current record for the book — while the previous record holder, graded CGC 9.0, sold for $3.2 million in 2014. Examples of Action Comics #1 don’t have to be CGC 8s and 9s to realize incredible prices. A copy graded CGC 6.0 realized $3.18 million in a Heritage Auctions sale in January 2022.

Action Comics #1 was the highest selling comic until late-2021 when a copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 — the first appearance of Spider-Man — snatched the title away from the Man of Steel with a record-setting $3.6 million. The two superheroes will likely be dueling it out for the top spot (with maybe an appearance from Batman) for years to come.

While copies of Action Comics #1 have been found in various states, this might be the first time that such a small piece of the cover was up for sale. The fragment is preserved inside a state-of-the-art CGC holder and designated “CVR” (cover only) with “WHITE pages.”

Twenty-seven bidders pursued this bit of comic history, with the final price tag likely topping what many CGC-grade 9.8 key issues will ever see.

This wasn’t the only piece of Action Comics #1 available, either. A CGC-certified page seven sold for $11,611, and a CGC Grade 9.4 Restored copy of Action Comics #1 was still available for a “buy now” price of $775,000.