The original Watchmen covers by iconic British artist Dave Gibbons are going under the hammer next month at the Heritage Auctions Vintage Comics & Comic Art Signature lot.
Also up for grabs is a pair of original pages and John Higgins’s color art guide for the historic cover of Watchmen #1.
Online bidding for the auction begins February 2, with the physical auction itself to be held February 21-23.
The Watchmen #1 cover is the jewel of the collection, which apparently comes from the family of Wizard magazine founder Gareb Shamus.
An auction for the first page of the series saw it sell for more than $30,000 in 2010, which is more than a full collection of the Watchmen covers went for in 1993, before the market for original comic art exploded.
Next month's lot will also feature the John Romita cover to Amazing Spider-Man #121, “The Night Gwen Stacy Died,” a key cover that also has a reportedly close tie to the upcoming Amazing Spider-Man movie sequel.
Record sales have been smashed in recent years, with another piece from the Shamus Collection, a Todd McFarlane Amazing Spider-Man cover, selling for more than $650,000 last summer.
McFarlane said: "My biggest surprise wasn’t the price paid for a piece of my artwork, though being part of a new record is flattering.
"What has surprised me is the level to which comic book artwork has entered the mainstream.
"The success of many comic-related movies has helped in this process, but the fervor and level to which Stephen Fishler and Vincent Zurzolo were willing to financially commit themselves is a testament that our medium can stand side by side with any other art form."
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