As if more proof were needed, the growing popularity of comic book auctions was displayed once again at Heritage Auctions' weekly sale on September 2.
 Comic book auctions are now being held by the likes of Sotheby's |
Each Sunday, the auction house holds an internet-only comic book sale, which has become incredibly popular with comic book collectors. These sales expand on the success of Heritage's Vintage Comics and Comic Art Signature Auction, at which a record-breaking price was recently achieved for Todd McFarlane's Spider-Man cover art.
Offering mid-range items, the latest instalment of the weekly auction set a new house record, with a total realisation of $216,108. Not only this, the 874 lot sale saw a "perfect sell-through rate" of 100%.
Barry Sandoval, director of operations in the comics and comic art division at Heritage, commented: "We have more 1960s Marvel collections in our weekly sales than ever before, and every week we have major key issues like Amazing Fantasy #15. We've sold 10 Amazing Fantasy #15s in the last 11 weeks in our internet auctions alone and, for anyone trying to assemble complete Marvel runs, the next few months' Sunday auctions will present an ideal opportunity to do so."
1962's Amazing Fantasy #15, which features the first appearance of Spider-Man, provided this Sunday's top lot with an impressive price of $11,353. Following this was a stunning copy of the Incredible Hulk #1, which saw $7,767.
Such is the growing popularity of comic book art at auction, high-end auction houses such as Sotheby's are now embracing the market's potential. The respected auction house held its inaugural auction on July 4, with a focus on European artists and publications.
Paul Fraser Collectibles has some great investment-grade comic art, including a brilliant sketch of Snoopy from Charles Schulz - an artist who continues to see outstanding results at auction.
