CGC-graded Batman #1 Sells for $2.22 Million

A dazzling copy of Batman #1 graded by Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®) realized $2.22 million at a Heritage Auctions sale on January 14, 2021. Graded CGC 9.4, it stands alone as the highest-graded copy in the CGC Census.

Batman #1, graded CGC 9.4. Realized: $2.22 million Click image to enlarge.

The strength of CGC-certified collectibles was on display again as the sale broke several records, including the highest price paid at auction for any comic book outside of a CGC-certified Action Comics #1, which introduced Superman. In addition, the CGC 9.4 Batman #1 is now the most-expensive comic book ever sold by Heritage Auctions. Both these records had just been set by a Detective Comics #27 graded CGC 7.0 that realized $1.5 million in a November 2020 Heritage sale.

Issued in Spring 1940, Batman #1 was the first edition of a title featuring Batman and his new sidekick Robin. The book includes the first appearance of two iconic villains: the Joker and Catwoman. A year earlier, Batman himself had been first introduced in Detective Comics #27, and his universe was developed in subsequent issues of that series.

The CGC Census lists 272 copies of Batman #1 as of mid-January 2021, with slightly less than half in Universal grade, about half in Restored and a handful in Qualified and Signature Series.

Golden Age comic books featuring Batman and Superman have wrestled over the years for honors as the most-prized.

In 2010, a Detective Comics #27 graded CGC 8.0 realized $1.075 million in a Heritage Auctions sale, becoming the first comic book to realize more than $1 million at auction. It was eclipsed in recent years by Action Comics #1, Superman's debut that was issued in June 1938. The copy mentioned above, graded CGC 9.0, realized $3.207 million in an eBay sale in August 2014.

CGC is the world's largest and most trusted third-party grading service for comics, trading cards, magazines, concert posters and similar items, with more than 7 million collectibles certified since 2000.

Related links

• Breaking Records, CGC-graded Detective Comics #27 Sells for $1.5 Million
• Batman #1 in the CGC Census