Top 10 Most Dramatic Art Finds of 2012
Can you guess the number one art find of 2012? If you've followed this blog for any amount of time you probably can.
Yep, that's right Action Comics No. 1.
While remodeling a house bought for $10,100, David Gonzalez ripped out a wall and found a pristine copy of the Man of Steel's first comic appearance. It has already been bid up to $113,000 and would be worth more except the cover got ripped after Gonzalez found the book. That rip dropped the book's value by $100,000. The last pristine copy of AC 1 sold for over $2 million.
Some other notable finds of 2012 according to HuffingtonPost.com are a lost Da Vinci found in a Scottish farmhouse, which if it turns out to be real, is estimated to be worth over $150 million. A $7 flea market find that led to the recovery of a stolen Renoir snatched six decades ago from the Baltimore Museum of Art and a painting titled "The White Owl" by William James, a pre-Raphaelite artist, was found in an attic and valued at over $113,000.
Found anything good at the flea market? The next time Grannie asks you to help her clean out the attic, you might want to think twice.
Yep, that's right Action Comics No. 1. While remodeling a house bought for $10,100, David Gonzalez ripped out a wall and found a pristine copy of the Man of Steel's first comic appearance. It has already been bid up to $113,000 and would be worth more except the cover got ripped after Gonzalez found the book. That rip dropped the book's value by $100,000. The last pristine copy of AC 1 sold for over $2 million.
Some other notable finds of 2012 according to HuffingtonPost.com are a lost Da Vinci found in a Scottish farmhouse, which if it turns out to be real, is estimated to be worth over $150 million. A $7 flea market find that led to the recovery of a stolen Renoir snatched six decades ago from the Baltimore Museum of Art and a painting titled "The White Owl" by William James, a pre-Raphaelite artist, was found in an attic and valued at over $113,000.
Found anything good at the flea market? The next time Grannie asks you to help her clean out the attic, you might want to think twice.
I remember that there was an inflated comic bubble in the early 90's that almost brought down the industry. Many companies went under because future investors thought that eventually the comics will have value. It seems to me that trying to find a extremely rare copy at a flea market is like playing the lottery for free, except it is costing you your time of going and your money to get there. It might be more profitable to search for buried treasure.
ReplyDeleteThis is so crazy! I love how material items can become very valuable with time. I find myself holding on to things that have value to me and I am sure to save them for future generations. I make sure I invest my money wisely, and people might think clothes don't have a true value, but they do in the fashion world. I own 3 silk chiffon maxi dresses that are so beautifully tailored and stitched. I bought two of them at a discounted price, they were originally priced at $600 dollars each, the other dress is worth $400. The dresses are just the start of my classic, timeless, and elite wardrobe. I will sure to add a little black Chanel Jacket, Louis Vuitton bag, Burberry trench and Milano Blannik pumps. These pieces will be passed on to my future daughters and hopefully they pass them on. These timeless pieces wont lose value because they are classics and are made from quality material.
ReplyDeleteI wish my mother has mother then just fur coats, diamonds, and gold.
Imal Aldabashi
These stories are crazy. First of all, how in the world did this guy let Action Comics no. 1 get ripped...? Seriously... was he simply jostling it around out of excitement? Or was he just that careless? It's upsetting, really.
ReplyDeleteSecond of all, I go to flea markets and garage sales all the time. I've also taken a few art history classes and can identify famous artists when I see them... how come I can't find a stolen Renoir once in a while?
Last but not least, it's just wild how much money these things sell for. Why do artists have to be dead for their art to be worth millions? If my art could support me like that now, I'd be all over that scene.
You can find really cool stuff at the flea market. I personally am more interested in bicycles and that sort of stuff and always find really neat stuff in amazing condition for just a couple bucks! just last week i picked up a set of Campagnolo track cranks with the Campagnolo chainring for just $20! Steeaaaaaal!
ReplyDeleteI always say the first thing I'm going to buy once I become a millionaire is going to be 'Action Comics #1'. I have always been a huge Superman fan, and owning this comic has always been a dream of mine. Not just for the nostalgic porpoises - but for the art! Yes, it is the first showing of the incredible SUPERMAN, but it is an amazing piece of art in itself. This was the first idea of a group of graphic pages that told a story in an new and exciting way. A new idea of a Superhero, a man with abilities far beyond the normal man - but helping the average man!
ReplyDeleteThis article reminds me of the movie “Blast From The Past” where a guy that had been living underground came out to world amazed and confused, and had I believe baseball cards that ended up being worth thousands of dollars. After watching this movie my brother used to keep cards because he said they were going to be worth thousands years later haha. Ever since that movie I myself fell into this obsession on keeping things thinking that they will be worth money later on. I got over it later on and sold or gave away some things I was saving, but after this article I’m thinking I should have maybe held on to that stuff. This is not the first time I hear or read about people finding valuable things when they move into houses or when they buy things at yard sales or flea market. Really makes me think. I also have been a fan of Superman, but know very little about comic books. I however recently got into his comics books and into Smallville comic books which I am obsessed with! I am planning on getting more into comic books, and I know for a fact I would never get rid of those, and you never know what they can be worth years from now.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this story it motivated me to go thrift shopping because you never know what you might find. I always found thrift stores very sketchy because all of the things are used and I rather buy new things. I find it crazy how just by ripping of the front cover of the comic book it decreased 13,000 dollars. This comic book is worth a lot more than a brand new iPhone. It is worth more than a car which I find very amusing.I always knew that paintings made by Da Vinci were super expensive and I can't get it across my mind that someone had one in a farmhouse. This painting was worth 150 million dollars and no one knew about it. Also, the other painting that was found in the attic and it was worth 113,000 dollars, it is crazy how much a paintings can be worth. Now I will take the time to go thrift shopping because something that originally cost me seven dollars can turn out to be worth over 100,000 dollars.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe the value for those copies of Action Comics. I always heard stories growing up about my great grandfather's barber shop had these comics just laying in the waiting room with kids playing around with them and practically destroying them. Of course when new issues came out they just threw away the old ones or just gave them to my dad and he would throw them away after reading them once. If only they knew how much that would be worth today and kept them. It's amazing how much these raise in value as they age. I’ll be keeping all my old copies of shonen jump and old video games in hope that they are worth a lot some day.
ReplyDelete