When’s the last time you tidied up? You never know what you might find. Last year, three brothers found a copy of the first Superman comic book while cleaning out their mother’s attic. On November 20, that comic sold for $9.12 million at Heritage Auctions, an auction house based in Texas. Heritage says Superman number 1 is the most expensive comic book ever sold. The previous record for a comic-book sale was $6 million.
The brothers, who have not revealed their identities publicly, found the comic in a dusty, cobwebby cardboard box. They immediately sent a message to the auction house. Lon Allen, vice president of comics at Heritage, flew out to inspect the item himself. “It was just in an attic, sitting in a box,” Allen told the AP. “Could have easily been thrown away, could’ve easily been destroyed in a thousand different ways.”
Superman number 1 was published in 1939. Allen estimates that there are fewer than 500 copies of that original printing left today, adding to its high value.
“This isn’t simply a story about old paper and ink,” one brother said in a statement released by the auction house. “This was never just about a collectible. This is a testament to memory, family, and the unexpected ways the past finds its way back to us.”
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