Thor First Appearance: Journey into Mystery #83 Value by Grade

Thor first appeared in Journey into Mystery #83 (cover date 1962), published by Marvel, by Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Larry Lieber. The source puts it this way: "Published in 1962 by Marvel Comics, the book features the debut of Marvel's Thor by Jack Kirby, Stan Lee and Larry Lieber.".

PriceCharting values for Journey into Mystery #83 (1962) by CGC grade, based on recorded sales and updated September 25, 2026:

• CGC 2.0: $4,186
• CGC 3.0: $5,554
• CGC 4.0: $7,054
• CGC 5.0: $11,885
• CGC 6.0: $15,071
• CGC 7.0: $20,738
• CGC 8.0: $40,869
• CGC 9.0: $47,000
• CGC 9.2: $53,130
• CGC 9.4: $134,115

The spread from CGC 2.0 ($4,186) to CGC 9.4 ($134,115) shows how much condition matters on a key issue. Restored, trimmed or incomplete copies sell far below these figures, and reprints and facsimiles (see below) are worth a small fraction. Grade and restoration are confirmed by a grading service such as CGC or CBCS; prices move with the market and the character's popularity.

• Creative team credited: published in 1962 by Marvel Comics, this issue features the debut of Marvel's Thor, created by Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, and Larry Lieber.
• Origin story premise (interior content): the story introduces him as the Norse god of thunder, sent to Earth by his father, Odin, to learn humility under the guise of Dr. Donald Blake.

• Indicia: the small print on the first page or inside cover gives the issue number, date and publisher; reprints usually say so there.
• Cover price and barcode: a price or barcode format that did not exist in the year printed means a later edition.
• Paper and staples: decades-old newsprint is tan at the edges; bright white pages on an old date are a warning sign.
• Restoration: color touch, trimmed edges and married covers are common on expensive keys; a grading service can detect them.

Shoot the front cover flat, straight on, in even light, then the indicia page and the back cover. Include the top edge and staples in one frame. The app reads the title, issue number and cover and matches it against the checks above; the indicia photo settles most reprint questions.

GoCollect's record for the issue gives a publication date of July 31, 1962, a 12-cent cover price, 36 pages and a cover by Jack Kirby, and lists four firsts in it: Thor, Donald Blake, the Kronans and Mjolnir. Wikipedia gives the cover date as August 1962. The series was renamed Thor starting with Thor #126 in 1966 (Wikipedia), so later Thor comics carry a different title on the cover.

Not as first written. Thor began with the alter ego of a surgeon, Donald Blake. Thor #159 (1968) changed that: it revealed that Thor was the real mythological Thor all along and that Donald Blake was a false identity Odin created to teach him humility (Wikipedia). Much later, Blake returned as a separate person, and during Fear Itself Kid Loki seeks him out to bring Thor back (Wikipedia).

The sources we checked give no age for him, so we can't rank him. Wikipedia says Thor was a founding member of the Avengers, who formed the team after defeating Loki, and that Asgardians have immense lifespans. In 2014 Jane Foster took up the hammer and became Thor for a time (Wikipedia), so "Thor" in later comics is not always the same person.