Skip to main content

    Oldest Superman cover design fetches $286,800 at auction

    Oldest Superman cover design fetches $286,800 at auction

    Share this story

    If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

    Superman Cover
    Superman Cover

    A cover design for what may be the oldest comic book cover featuring Superman sold for more than a quarter of a million dollars earlier today. Action Comics No. 15, which shows Superman holding up a submarine from the depths of the ocean, sold for $286,800 through Heritage Auctions. Its listing was valued at $30,000, making for a healthy markup on the design, which was illustrated by Fred Guardineer. Per The Hollywood Reporter, which spotted the sale, that's still less than half an Amazing Spider-Man cover drawn by Todd McFarlane that sold for $675,250, as well as the 1932 Tintin in America cover art that sold for a record $1.6 million — both of those in 2012.