You certainly cannot talk about collector’s items without discussing the tried and true comic book. After cartoons became popular in newspapers, comic books were created and circulated. The art style is specific to that medium, and they are drawn in panels to tell a story.
Comic books have been around since the late 1800s, so there are millions of them to collect. For most, the drive to collect them stems from nostalgia. Others are in it for the art. There are many reasons that a comic collection would be enjoyable to someone. Of course, there are also all of the stories to read through. Let’s look at some history and reasons why some comic books are valuable, and some aren’t.
Old Comic Books for Sale
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Where to Buy Old Comic Books
There is a comic book shop in almost every single town, but if you are looking for rare and valuable finds, eBay is where people will be selling their collections of old comic books. Since so many have lost value over the years, there are options to buy old comic books in bulk.
A bulk box of old comic books on eBay can run you about $50. If you aren’t looking for anything in particular, a bulk box could be a fun way to start your collection, and use ones that you don’t want for art projects or donate them.
History of Old Comic Books
Comic books emerged after newspaper cartoons gained popularity. These cartoons were mostly satire or political. They ran weekly, or sometimes even daily in papers, keeping relevant with what was going on. The comedic factor helped them to gain popularity. Soon after, panel comic books started gaining their popularity in the 1930s.
Some of the most popular comics have been around since the beginning. Before super heroes were in movies, guess what? They were in comic books! DC Comics, which you may know for the creation of Batman and Superman, started to rise in popularity between the 1930s and 1950s. From then on DC Comics became a stable in the comic book world.
We could spend all day going into the history of old comic books, but the main thing here is that they were popular then, and they are still popular now. There are so many genres and stories in them, that there is definitely something for everyone.
Are Old Comic Books Valuable?
Well, the answer is yes and no. It all depends on the comic book and condition. It’s important to learn the rarity of an old comic book. Some of them might be for sale all over the internet, which can depreciate value. The most valuable comic book of all time according to the internet is the first issue of Action Comics which is the comic book Superman first appears in. The old comic book was in perfect condition and sold for $3.2 million dollars! Now, not all of the comic books you find will be worth this much, of course.
One way to figure out the value of an old comic book is looking at the original price. These prices can be broken down by the categories that old comic books live in:
- Golden Age
- Otherwise known as 10-cent comic books, they are from the 1920’s, 40’s and 50’s. These are going to be some of the oldest ones out there, and worth the most money.
- Silver Age
- These old comic books moved into the 12-cent price range, and were circulated in the 1960’s. These are the second most valuable, and going to be worth quite a bit depending on availability.
- Bronze Age
- Old comic books from this era were made in the 1970’s and 80’s. The prices varied a lot from 15-cents to 50-cents. The most valuable ones from this era are superhero comics. As they get closer to our modern times, the values go down. People also started catching on that they were selling for more as they got older, so they were hanging onto copies, which depreciated value since there was an abundance.
- Copper Age
- These comic books encompass those from the 1980’s up until today. You will not find a lot of value here, as they are still pretty modern.
Chris is a junior editor at TheDealExperts specializing in gaming and tech. In his spare time, Chris enjoys spending time with his dogs, doing some long-distance running and watching post-war era shows and movies on Netflix.
