Heritage Offers Highest-graded Fantastic Four #1 and Other CGC-certified Grails

Many rare comics and pulps certified by Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®), some in amazingly high grades and never before seen on the market, are available in an upcoming sale. Bidding is already underway for Heritage Auctions’ Comics & Comic Art Signature Auction on September 12-15, 2024.

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Among the highlights is a Fantastic Four #1 graded CGC 9.6 (lot 91010). This comic from the earliest days of the Silver Age helped inaugurate the modern Marvel era of comics as we know it today. Released by Marvel Comics in 1961, this is the first appearance of the Fantastic Four by the iconic duo of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. There are slightly more than 3,000 examples of this comic in the CGC Comics Census, but this is one of only two with the highest grade of 9.6. Bidding had already surpassed $400,000 more than two weeks before the auction and is expected to challenge the current auction record for this comic: $1.5 million for a CGC 9.2 in 2022.

If that lot seems out of reach, there are three more examples of this book offered in this auction, including CGC 9.4 Restored (lot 91211), a CGC Signature Series signed by Stan Lee graded CGC 7.5 Restored (lot 91212) and a Golden Record Reprint graded CGC 9.4 (lot 93393).

Also offered in this auction is an Amazing Fantasy #15 graded CGC 9.0 (lot 91004). The book features the first appearance of Marvel Comics’ Spider-Man by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko in 1962. After the character’s immediate success in Amazing Fantasy #15, Marvel rushed Spider-Man into his own monthly series, and he has become one of the most recognizable superheroes of all time. This isn’t the only copy of this Silver Age grail available in this auction; it also includes a CGC 7.5 (lot 91170) and a CGC 5.0 (lot 91171).

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Another sale to watch is an Amazing Stories #29 graded CGC 9.8 (lot 91017). This pulp is nearly a century old and pre-dates the modern superhero by a decade, so finding one in CGC 9.8 is — as the title suggests — amazing! Published by Gernsback in 1928, this pulp is the first appearance of Buck Rogers, by creator Philip Francis Nowlan. After his debut, Buck Rogers was featured in a popular newspaper comic strip in 1929, which launched the character into radio, movies and television. CGC began grading pulps this year  and there are already 29 examples of this pulp in CGC Comics Census, but this one is far and above the single highest-graded copy. A CGC 7.0 example is also offered in this auction (lot 93475).

Other CGC-certified comics in this auction include:

• an All-Star Comics #8 graded CGC 4.0 (lot 91003)
• a Batman #1 graded CGC 3.5 Conserved (lot 91028)
• a Batman #121 graded CGC 9.0 (lot 91006)
• a Captain America Comics #1 graded CGC 4.0 Qualified (lot 91044)
• a Crime SuspenStories #22 with a Gaines File Copy pedigree graded CGC 9.4 (lot 91007)
• a Detective Comics #29 graded CGC 8.0 Conserved (lot 91008)
• a Fantastic Four #5 graded CGC 9.2 (lot 91011)
• a Superman #1 graded CGC 1.0 Qualified (lot 91149)
• a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 graded CGC 9.8 (lot 91016)
• an X-Men #94 graded CGC 9.8 (lot 91269)

About CGC

Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for a vast variety of pop culture collectibles. These divisions include CGC Cards, CGC Video Games and CGC Home Video. CGC Cards provides expert card grading for TCGs, sports cards and non-sports cards. CGC Video Games is dedicated to video game grading for the most popular consoles, including Nintendo, Sega, Atari, PlayStation and more. The newest division of CGC, CGC Home Video, provides expert VHS grading in addition to other types of home media, including Betamax tapes, DVDs and Blu-ray discs.