A rare copy of Action Comics No 1, the 1938 issue that first introduced Superman, has been sold in a private deal for $15 million, setting a record for a comic book sale, according to brokers involved in the transaction.

The comic, once stolen from Hollywood actor Nicolas Cage and later recovered, was purchased by an anonymous collector. The sale was confirmed Friday by New York-based Metropolis Collectibles/ComicConnect, which negotiated the deal. Both the buyer and the seller chose to remain unidentified.

Action Comics No 1, originally priced at just 10 cents, is widely regarded as the foundation of the modern superhero genre.

Fewer than 100 copies are believed to still exist. The sold copy was graded 9 out of 10 by Certified Guaranty Company, making it one of the highest-rated versions known.

This particular comic has a dramatic history. Cage bought it in 1996 for $150,000, a record at the time. It was stolen during a party at his home in 2000 and remained missing for more than a decade before being discovered in a California storage unit in 2011. Cage later sold it at auction for $2.2 million.

The previous comic record was set in November, when Superman No 1 sold for $9.12 million. Collectibles experts say the comic’s rarity, condition and high-profile backstory significantly boosted its value, cementing its status as an icon of American pop culture.