The Superman comics were bought at a boot sale and the seller was unaware of their value, but now they are set to be sold at auction in a matter of weeks for a crazy high price
An anonymous man has revealed how he unknowingly struck gold at a car boot sale years ago, purchasing a collection of Superman comics for a mere £20 because he liked the look of them. Now, as he prepares to auction them off, everyone is gobsmacked by the hefty price tag they’re set to fetch.
He bagged forty-eight identical copies of the comic at a second-hand sale a decade ago following a house clearance, with the comics having been lost for nearly 40 years. Known as This Island Bradman, these are considered the rarest of all Superman comics ever produced, earning the collection the title of the “Holy grail”.
The unsuspecting owner stashed them in his loft and promptly forgot about them. However, during the Covid lockdown, he finally had the time to sift through them and was stunned to discover their true worth.
Forty-seven of the comics are set to go under the hammer individually, with the best condition ones expected to fetch up to £3,000 each.
Even the less pristine copies could still command between £50 and £100 at The Ewbank’s auction, taking place in Woking, Surrey on 4 November.
A spokesperson shared: “Missing for nearly 40 years, the box of comics changed hands for just £20 at a car boot sale around a decade ago, with the owner storing them in his loft.
“He only discovered what he had during Covid, when he had enough time on his hands to look into them.
“What he discovered was a run of 48 identical Superman comics that formed the surviving run of a unique private commission.
“The only known example in DC Comics’ 89-year history”.
They added: “It emerged that in the late 1980s building works at the home of wealthy businessman Godfrey Bradman exposed his son’s extensive action comic collection to asbestos, resulting in its removal and destruction.
“To make amends, the businessman commissioned the special edition as a gift for his son’s bar mitzvah in 1988, with a view to handing out copies to the guests.
“Although it was a one-off commission designed to feature the businessman’s son, Daniel Bradman, and his friend Andrew Hunt, alongside Superman, DC Comics decided to build the storyline into its existing Superman adventure.”
It is believed that approximately 200 copies were produced, with more than half distributed to guests.
Titled the This Island Bradman Superman comic book, it contained an eight-page tale written by David Levin with illustrations by Curt Swan and Angelo Torres.
Following the celebration, the businessman is reported to have instructed the clean-up team to dispose of the leftover comics.
However, one member of staff chose to keep them, taking them to his residence, where they were subsequently forgotten.
Tom Francis-Duma, Ewbank’s Comics specialist, revealed that numerous comics remained in “near-mint condition”.
He added: “Die-hard Superman fans have been chasing the discarded stash of 48 comics for the best part of four decades, and now we have found them.
“This is a Holy Grail moment for die-hard Superman completists to fill that elusive gap in their collections and represents the last opportunity to get hold of a copy of this unique commission.”