Comic book featuring first Superman appearance from 1938 sells for $6m

A comic book featuring the first appearance of Superman has sold for $6million at auction.

A nearly pristine issue of Action Comics #1 has gone under the hammer for a record-breaking price.

The huge figure has surpassed the previous record price tag of $5.3million, according to the New York Post.

“Without Superman and Action Comics No. 1, who knows whether there ever would have been a Golden Age of comics — or if the medium would have become what it is today,” said Barry Sandoval, the vice president of Heritage Auctions, ahead of the sale.

Describing the item, the lot said: “The colours are stunningly rich, and the cover is almost pristine and largely unmarred,” the lot description explains. It is rated 8.5 [Very Fine+] in collector parlance.

Industry experts believe that only about 100 copies of the 85-year-old comic book, out of 200,000 printed in 1938, survive.

The highest-priced comic previously was a 8.0-graded issue of the 1939 Superman #1, which sold for $5.3 million in a private sale in 2022.

In 2022 a near mint condition copy of a 1941 comic featuring the first appearance of Captain America sold for over three million US dollars (£2.3 million) at auction.

The sale made Captain America Comics No 1 one of the top five most valuable comic books in the world.

The edition features the well-known Marvel superhero, played by Chris Evans in the film franchise, punching Adolf Hitler in the face on its cover.