The earliest Superman cover art known to exist – Fred Guardineer’s action-packed tableau from 1939 of the Man of Steel from Action Comics # 15 – brought $286,800 at Heritage Auctions on February 22, 2014 in New York.
“Guardineer’s cover is the earliest Superman cover art in existence,” said Ed Jaster, Senior Vice President at Heritage, “and an absolute treasure of comics history. A price like this shows just how much collectors covet a rarity like this.”
The Action #15 cover depicts Superman in full hero mode, saving a distressed U.S. Submarine just a few feet from a presumably bad end in the depths of the ocean, without seemingly an ounce of strain.
It was purchased by Richard Evans, of Houston, TX, who owns Bedrock City Comics Company. He has said that he plans to display the cover in his shop.
