Original art from Jack "The King" Kirby will feature in an Italian Masters of Comic Art sale tomorrow (July 20), alongside some of Europe's most respected artists.
 The work offers a bargain to collectors with a surprisingly low estimate |
The seven panel strip is taken from issue 106 of Kirby's The Mighty Thor series and was originally published on page two. With pencils from Kirby and inks from Vince Colleta and Chic Stone, the fantastic work offers a bargain at €2,520-3,600 ($3,084-$4,404), though considerable staining is visible across the strip.
Jack Kirby was one of the most legendary figures in the comic book industry, best known for his work with Marvel Comics as well as rivals DC Comics. Together with Stan Lee, Kirby contributed to the creation of the Fantastic Four, X-Men and the Hulk among others and has been described as "the William Blake of comics".
A collection of conceptual artwork which erotic artist Milo Manara created for a planned re-make of the Jane Fonda classic Barbarella is also expecting strong results. Leading bids among the selection on offer is a superb, fully-coloured piece entitled The Space Bar, which is expected to bring €2,450-3,500.
In a timely sale, given the release of the latest Batman film on the same day, the auction will also feature a series of works from respected DC Comics artist Simone Bianchi. His sparse depiction of the Dark Knight, which has been signed and annotated by the artist, will auction with an estimate of €245-350, though it is likely to surpass this considerably with the character's popularity at an all time high.
Now is a promising time for comic book collectors, with larger auctions houses and investors slowly realising the potential of this lucrative market. Sotheby's held its inaugural comic book sale earlier this month on July 4, which was highlighted by a rare Tintin strip selling at $295,500.
Heritage Auctions, one of the world's biggest auction houses, is looking to secure its place as leader in the market with an upcoming sale that promises to total more than $9m. Find out more here.
Here at Paul Fraser Collectibles, we have a brilliant selection of comic art, including this excellent snoopy sketch which has been signed by the beloved Peanuts creator, Charles Schulz.
