CGC Unveils Custom Label for The Northern Collection as Landmark Comic Archive Heads to Market

CGC® is thrilled to be part of bringing one of the largest and most comprehensive comic book discoveries of all time to the public. Estimated at more than 90,000 comics, The Northern Collection represents decades of focused, methodical collecting on a scale rarely seen in the hobby. To commemorate the collection as it enters the marketplace through Stanley Gibbons Baldwin's on March 27, 2026, CGC created an exclusive custom label, further distinguishing books from the collection.

“It’s an honor for CGC to be entrusted with grading such an amazing and historic collection,” said CGC President Matt Nelson. “The scope of The Northern Collection is remarkable, and we’re proud to play a role in helping bring these comics to collectors around the world.”

The collection itself began in the 1960s, when the original owner set out with an extraordinary goal to acquire every US comic ever published. While they wish to remain anonymous, they are well-known within the Swedish publishing industry and had correspondence with Disney luminaries such as Carl Barks and Floyd Gottfredson, who signed books for him. They amassed large quantities of material from the 1940s through the 1960s, then shifted to buying multiple new copies throughout the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s, preserving many books in near-mint condition. Their collection remained largely hidden for decades.

The collection features some of the highest-graded copies of Swedish comic books, and it is so expansive that more books are being discovered among various storage facilities.

The current owner, identified only by his first name Gustaf, learned of the collection’s existence in 2022 through industry contacts. After lengthy negotiations, he was finally able to view the comics, which were stored among hundreds of boxes of other collectibles. Recognizing both the historical importance and the logistical challenge ahead, he brought in Bryson Johnson, of Comics Heaven, in 2023 to begin evaluating the material — which also includes some of the current owner’s collection of books.

Early inventories quickly proved incomplete. Even after years of sorting, new boxes continue to surface, buried beneath other stored items. The scale of the project became fully apparent during this process, culminating in a final agreement with the original owner that was reached by telephone while the current owner and Johnson were in London visiting CGC on unrelated comic business.

“I am extremely proud that we have been entrusted with one of the most significant comic collections ever assembled. Through our ongoing program of auctions, we continue to bring to market the most exciting consignments,” said Iain Murphy, co-CEO of Stanley Gibbons Baldwin’s. “The forthcoming Northern Collection to be offered at Stanley Gibbons Baldwin’s is a true landmark for the international comic collecting community. One of the most important collections to reach the European market, it spans from the Golden Age to the Modern Age and includes exceptional examples from every era, with rare and highly sought-after key issues presented in remarkable depth and quality.”

Today, CGC is overseeing the grading of books that span DC, Marvel, independents, crime, horror, Golden Age material and more. Marvel is nearly complete from the 1960s through the early 1990s, and almost every US comic published between 1970 and 1990 is represented, often in multiple high-grade copies. Many of the comics have not appeared on the market for decades, and some have no recorded sales history at all.

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