A super-rare copy of the 1938 comic that introduced Superman to the world has been sold to an anonymous collector for $15 million.
The private sale of the Action Comics No 1 copy, once stolen from actor Nicolas Cage's home and returned to him over a decade later, was announced on Friday.
Previously, the record was held by a fresh Superman No 1 comic book, which was sold for $9.12 million at auction in November.
Superman's debut is one of several tales anthologised in Action Comics No 1, which is widely credited with having defined the superhero genre as we now know it. Fewer than 100 copies are thought to exist.
Both the comic book's owner and the buyer remained anonymous amid the record-breaking purchase.
The broker said the copy had been graded nine out of a possible 10 points by the Certified Guaranty Company, which specialises in authenticating collectables, making it the joint-highest-scoring copy of the comic to date.
Moreover, the comic's value was also increased due to its association with Hollywood star Nicolas Cage.
The Ghost Rider star purchased the particular copy in 1996 for $150,000; however, the comic was stolen during a party at Cage's home in 2000 and only found a decade later in 2011 inside a storage unit in California.
Six months later, Cage sold the copy at auction for $2.2 million.
