A COLCHESTER auction house is selling a large comic book collection worth thousands of pounds.
Auctioneers Reeman Dansie has acquired a vast collection of Marvel and DC comic books from the wife of the magazines' previous owner.
He had accumulated the historic books over the course of 60 years but now suffers with dementia and is being cared for in a home.
Louis Chapman, head saleroom porter at Reeman Dansie, catalogued each comic to determine its value along with a colleague.
Some of the comic books, including a copy of The Amazing Spider-Man #6 from 1963, are expected to fetch as much as £700.
Louis said: “The two big comic book [publishers] are there, Marvel and DC. Both are in the cinema now, getting a lot more attention.
"Kids are going back to these old comic books from the 60s and 70s, reading and collecting them.”
Part 1 of the collection is currently up in a timed sale, which is due to end on Monday, and is expected to fetch £20,000-£30,000.
Part 2 will be available to bid on from May 26, for two weeks and is expected to fetch £15,000-£20,000.
The collection is on timed sale, meaning interested parties can place their bids right up to closing.
Louis added that most of the comics were in mint condition, other than some wear and tear in some cases as a result of the owner’s son reading them as a child.
Although Reeman Dansie is better known for selling fine art, they have had recent success with comic books.
According to Louis, anything from the 1930s would be “hitting a goldmine”, something which proved true when a copy of Action Comics #1 sold for £1.5 million.
The cover featured Superman lifting a VW Bug over his head
However, this was not the only comic book success story.
An X-Men #1 comic book from 1963 recently sold for approximately £2,000 at auction.
Amazingly, the rare collectors’ item was not initially brought to the team’s attention.
It was discovered by chance after they looked through a box intended for general sale.
Age and quality are the most important factors when assessing a comic book’s value.
Well-maintained comic books from the 1960s also generally command high valuations.
To follow the auction visit reemandansie.com.
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