DALLAS, TX.- The original Don Heck artwork introducing Tony Stark’s superhero persona, page 1 of Tales of Suspense No. 39 from March 1963, made history once again July 10 when it set a new auction price record for original comic art, taking in $3,875,000 as the highlight lot in Heritage Auctions’ ongoing Comic Art Signature® Auction.
“A fantastic image and a historic book combine for a record price,” says Joe Mannarino, Heritage Auctions’ New York-based Director of Comics & Comic Art. “Very few of the early Marvel splash pages are known to exist. When one shows up, the market is ready to react.”
That is especially true in the case of wildly popular characters such as Iron Man. Bidding was highly competitive, with six different bidders continuing to vie for the page even after it passed the $3 million mark.
Mannarino credits the character with helping develop a new generation of fans starting in 2008 with the Robert Downey Jr.-starring Iron Man, Marvel Studio’s first entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, leading to the Avengers and beyond.
The sale price tops the previous Comic Art price record of $3,360,000 set in January 2022 at Heritage by 1984’s Marvel Super-Heroes Secret Wars No. 8 story page 25, the Mike Zeck art revealing Peter Parker’s new black costume that turns out to be a character itself: Venom.
Heritage Auctions’ Comic Books Signature® Auction continues through July 11 and the Comic Art Signature® Auction continues through July 12.
