Rare ‘Incredible Hulk’ Comic Book Sells For $490,000, Breaks Record

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has produced some of the top-grossing movies of all time, but don’t forget where it all started – comic books. A rare first edition of The Incredible Hulk was auctioned off through ComicConnect private collector for $490,000.

“Highly-graded copies of Hulk #1 are notoriously hard to find, due to the cheap paper used and the smudging of the gray color on the front cover,” ComicConnect Chief Operating Officer Vincent Zurzolo said.

The comic book was rated a 9.0, which is considered close to mint condition. For a book that was published in 1962, an issue with a high rating like that is difficult to acquire.

The book features the original grey Hulk, instead of the green that has been popularized. Marvel creator Stan Lee has said that the printer had trouble keeping the Hulk a consistent grey with the four-step printing process at the time, so he decided to change the color to green for the second issue.

The rarity of this issue has made it the top-selling Hulk comic ever. The highest-selling comic book was a 1962 issue of Amazing Fantasy #15, where Spider-Man makes his first appearance. It was bought in August for $3.6 million.

Zurzolo sees collecting of vintage comic books as a growing trend as the value continues to increase.

“It will be a cornerstone of his collectible investment portfolio,” Zurzolo said of the Hulk #1 buyer. “Hulk will only continue to get bigger with time if you know what I mean.”