THE FLASH #173

Cover shows moderate wear typical of a Silver Age book: soft corners, a few visible creases and surface scuffs across the black background, and light rubbing along the edges. There is a subtle vertical crease/stress line down the right side and some minor color flaking near the spine. The cover retains good gloss and color for its age with no major tears or missing pieces visible. Book is in a protective sleeve; interior and back cover were not assessed.

The Flash #173 arrived in September 1967 during the height of the Silver Age Flash run, a series that helped define the DC house style of the period under the guiding hand of Carmine Infantino. The issue is a representative entry in the long Gardner Fox/John Broome-scripted stretch of the title, offering the kind of clean, kinetic superhero storytelling that made the character a cornerstone of the era, though it does not carry a first appearance, origin, or other landmark distinction that would elevate it to key status.

Market data across the certified population shows a typical Silver Age curve: values stay modest through the mid grades, climb noticeably in the 8.0-9.2 range, and accelerate sharply at the top of the census, where only a handful of copies exist above 9.4 and none have yet been certified at 9.8 or 10.0. This shape reflects steady collector interest in completing Flash Silver Age runs rather than speculative demand tied to a single milestone appearance, with pricing driven primarily by scarcity of high-grade survivors rather than character-first-appearance premiums.

This issue suits run-builders and Silver Age Flash specialists more than speculative buyers chasing a marquee key. Raw copies in low and mid grades trade cheaply and are readily available given the depth of the census, while the handful of copies in the 9.4-9.6 range command outsized premiums, and a future 9.8 submission would likely set a new high-water mark for the issue given the current absence of any copy at that grade.