Rare Book Monthly

Articles - July - 2013 Issue

There Are Still Six-Figure Books to be Found in the Attics and Walls of Old Houses

Superman was introduced to the world with a bang.

Superman was introduced to the world with a bang.

There's nothing quite like the story of finding a valuable old book in an attic, garage sale, eBay, or the like. Once in awhile, these dreams actually come true. One man who can attest to this is David Gonzales, from Minnesota.

Mr. Gonzales is a small contractor. Normally, he is hired to help people with remodeling projects. However, this time, with some money put aside, he bought a small home himself, a “fixer-upper” to fix up. The plan was to resell it when he finished.

His find was not in the attic or basement. It was fortunate he was a remodeler, as otherwise he never would have found it. When he started pulling the walls off his 1938 house, he found old newspapers which had been used as insulation. He also found something else. Hidden in the walls was a copy of Action Comics #1, published in 1938.

To those not aficionados of comic books, that may not mean anything. To those who are, it is the “holy grail” of comic book collecting. It is the most valuable comic book ever sold. A copy sold for over $2 million at auction recently. This comic is no joke. What makes it valuable is that Action Comics #1 introduced the character of Superman to the world. He remains without peer. There have been many other superheroes introduced over the years, and Batman could give him a run for his money, but ultimately, there is only one superest of the super, and that is Superman. Clark Kent could not have imagined what he was starting when first he put on a cape in a phone booth (aside: where does Superman dress now that everyone uses cell phones?).

Now, Mr. Gonzales' copy is not worth $2 million. That copy was the best one known, a 9 on the 10-point comic grading scale. This copy only comes in at a 2. Seventy years in the walls can do this to you. Actually, it was probably not so much the years in the walls, where darkness preserved its colors, but the lack of care exhibited in sticking it in the walls in the first place. It was somewhat brittle and not as clean and smooth as a copy off the rack. According to the wire services, something else happened after he found it. Reportedly, a relative handled it and wanted a cut of the money, leading to a dispute in which the back cover was torn. Doing that was the equivalent of tearing up thousand-dollar bills, many of them.

Nonetheless, Mr. Gonzales still realized he had something special here, though he did not know how special. He took the comic to a comic book dealer, and then to Comic Connect. Comic Connect is a noted online comic auction house. They recognized just how valuable it is. Even a first edition Superman with a 2 rating is valued at $110,000. They put it up for sale. Bidders recognized its value too. They saw $110,000 as way too much of a bargain for this copy. When the bidding closed on June 11, the price realized was $175,000. Mr. Gonzales could not have dreamed of even a small fraction of this amount to be made on the house. However, he is not selling it. The auction house reported that he plans to finish fixing the house, but “swears he will never sell it.” As for the money lost to the damage, he apparently doesn't mind. He told a reporter that money does not mean that much to him. He would rather work for his money.

Rare Book Monthly

  • DOYLE
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    July 23, 2025
    DOYLE, July 23: WALL, BERNHARDT. Greenwich Village. Types, Tenements & Temples. Estimate $300-500
    DOYLE, July 23: STOKES, I. N. PHELPS. The Iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498-1909. New York: Robert H. Dodd, 1915-28. Estimate: $3,000-5,000
    DOYLE, July 23: [AUTOGRAPH - US PRESIDENT]FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT. A signed photograph of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Estimate $500-800
    DOYLE, July 23: [ARION PRESS]. ABBOTT, EDWIN A. Flatland. A Romance of Many Dimensions. San Francisco, 1980. Estimate $2,000-3,000.
    DOYLE, July 23: TOLSTOY, LYOF N. and NATHAN HASKELL DOLE, translator. Anna Karénina ... in eight parts. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co., [1886]. Estimate: $400-600
    DOYLE, July 23: ROWLING, J.K. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. London: Bloomsbury, 2000. Estimate $1,200-1,800
  • Freeman’s | Hindman
    Western Manuscripts and Miniatures
    July 8, 2025
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. FRANCESCO PETRARCH (b. Arezzo, 20 July 1304; d. Arqua Petrarca, 19 July 1374). $20,000-30,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF THE MASTER OF THE VITAE IMPERATORUM (active Milan, 1431-1459). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF ATTAVANTE DEGLI ATTAVANTI (GABRIELLO DI VANTE) (active Florence, c. 1452-c. 1520/25). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. FOLLOWER OF HERMAN SCHEERE (active London, c. 1405-1425). $15,000-20,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. An exceptionally rare, illuminated music leaf from a Mozarabic Antiphonal with sister leaves mostly in museum collections. $11,500-14,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. Exceptional leaf from a prestigious Antiphonary by a leading illuminator of the late Duecento. $11,500-14,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. CIRCLE OF THE MASTER OF MS REID 33 and SELWERD ABBEY SCRIPTORIUM (AGNES MARTINI?) (active The Netherlands, Groningen, c. 1468-1510). $10,000-15,000.
    Freeman’s | Hindman, July 8. Previously unknown illumination from one of the most renowned Gothic Choir Book sets of the Middle Ages. $6,000-8,000.
  • Sotheby’s
    Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern
    Now through July 10, 2025
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Book of Hours by the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht, Use of Sarum, in Latin, Southern Netherlands (Bruges), c.1450. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Albert Einstein. Autograph letter signed, to Attilio Palatino, on his research into General Relativity, 12 May 1929. £12,000 to £18,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: John Gould. The Birds of Europe, [1832-] 1837, 5 volumes, contemporary half morocco, subscriber’s copy. £40,000 to £60,000.
    Sotheby’s
    Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern
    Now through July 10, 2025
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: Ian Fleming. A collection of James Bond first editions, 8 volumes in all. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, 1997, first edition, hardback issue. £50,000 to £70,000.
    Sotheby’s, Ending July 10: J.R.R. Tolkien. Autograph letter signed, to Amy Ronald, on Pauline Baynes's map of Middle Earth, 1970. £7,000 to £10,000.
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