A near-mint condition copy of Batman #1 (Spring 1940) -- the highest-graded book in the Comics Guaranty, LLC (CGC era) -- is now up for auction.
Seller Heritage Auctions described Batman #1 as "one of the top five Golden Age key issues," and noted that no copy CGC-certified as near-mint has ever been sold at auction. This copy, graded 9.4, is being sold without reserve.
Batman #1 contains both the first appearance of The Joker, whose debut story was rewritten to keep him alive at the end. That editorial call allowed the Clown Prince of Crime to become a recurring, enduring villain who was the title character of an Oscar-winning film in 2019. The book also has the first appearance of Catwoman, then called The Cat, who went on to become Batman's love interest as well as adversary, and a headliner of her own long-running titles.
Batman has gone on to be one of the few characters continuously published since the Golden Age, headlining multiple spinoff titles and being a mainstay of the Justice League of America and The Outsiders.
A 9.2 value near-mint copy of Batman #1 is valued at $860,000. Bidding begins Dec. 23, and the auction is scheduled for Jan. 14-15, 2021.
Source: Heritage Auctions