Collected by singer-songwriter Graham Nash, the assembly of underground comix art included an original unused cover for Crumb’s groundbreaking Zap Comix #1. The 1967 cover fetched $525,800.
Nine other R. Crumb pieces from ID, Weirdo, American Splendor, and others made up the balance of the take. Of those, three lots made six figures: a 4-page story from The People’s Comics ($203,150), a 4-page story from Weirdo #22 ($131,450), and the cover for the second issue of ID ($101,575).
"The market for original comic art continues to show its strength — especially for works by Robert Crumb," said Ed Jaster, Senior Vice President Heritage Auctions.
Jaster’s conclusion is buoyed by previous auctions of Crumb’s work, including this spring’s auction of Crumb’s cover for Ballantine’s Fritz the Cat collection. The artwork fetched $717,000 and set a record for the sale of American comic book art (see "New Record Price for American Comic Art").