If you know of a term you think should be included in this glossary, please send us an e-mail letting us know about it.

Annual - A comic that is published once a year.

Ashcan - A prepublication comic book shown to potential advertisers.

Atom Age - Refers to comics published around 1946-1956.

Bi-monthly - A comic that is published once every two months.

Bi-weekly - A comic that is published once every two weeks.

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Brittleness - Paper that has deteriorated to a point that it may fall apart or crumble to the touch.

Bronze Age - Refers to comics published between 1970-1985.

Browning - Aging paper that is between tanning and brittleness.

Cameo - A brief appearance of a character in a comic book.

Certification - A process designed to provide the comic book collector with comprehensive information on any given book, giving the collector a confidence base when purchasing books.

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CGGroup - The acronym for our previous company name Comic Grading Group.

Chromium Cover - A limited edition book which has a special foil cover.

Cleaning - Removing dust, dirt, and other materials from a comic book.

Color Touch - The process of using colored inks to cover missing color pieces during restoration.

Comic Book Dealer - Someone who buys and sells comic books as an occupation.

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Comic Book Repair - An attempt to repair a loose staple, centerfold, or tear without trying to change the appearance of the book. Repair is often considered a defect, is usually fairly evident, and usually involves using glue, tape or other common items.

Comic Book Restoration - Any attempt, amateur or professional, to change or enhance a comic book's appearance.

Comic Code Authority - In 1954 a committee was formed by major publishers to set guidelines for acceptable content for comic books.

Complete Run - Having all issues of a specific comic book title.

Condition - Usually referred to as grade, it describes the state of preservation of a comic book.

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Convention/Con - An event designed to bring buyers and sellers of comic books together, often offering the opportunity to meet industry professionals.

Coupon Clipped/Cut - A comic book that has had a coupon pulled or cut out.

Crease - A heavy fold in the paper of a comic book.

Crossover - When one or more characters appear in another character's story or title.

De-acidification - A process used to lower the acid level in a comic book's paper.

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Debut - A character's very first appearance in a comic book.

Defect - Damage that takes away from the appearance or shape of a comic book, and keeps it from being able to be a mint quality comic book.

Embossed Cover - When the cover has a pattern pressed into it creating a raised surface.

Eye Appeal - A term used in describing a comic book's overall appearance in relation to its condition.

Fair Market Value - The current average value of a book on the open market, or replacement cost of a book in the same condition.

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Fanzine - An amateur publication, usually on a specific topic, created by a fan.

First Appearance - Same as Debut, defined above.

Foil Cover - Created when metal foil is hot stamped on a cover of a comic book.

Four Color - A process when the three primary colors and black are used in printing. This also refers to the Four-Color series that was published by Dell.

Foxing - Tiny orange/brown discoloration spots caused by mold that appear on the cover and/or interior pages of a comic book.

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Gatefold Cover - A double cover that folds in on itself.

Genre- Categories of comic books grouped together according to subject matter.

Give Away - A promotional comic book that is given away.

Golden Age - Refers to comic books from 1938-1955.

Hologram Cover - A comic book that has a 3-D hologram affixed to the cover.

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Hot Stamping - Refers to foil, prism paper, and inks being pressed onto the cover of a comic book.

Indica - Usually printed on the inside front page, the Indica gives general information about the comic book, such as issue number, title, date, and publisher.

Inker - The person that lays down the inks over the penciler's artwork.

J.L.A. - Justice League of America.

J.S.A. - Justice Society of America.

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Key Issue - A term used when referring to an important issue of a comic book series.

Label - The label found in the interior of a certified comic book holder. It displays the issue number, title, publisher, grade, and sometimes the artist or importance of the book.

Loose Cover - When a cover becomes detached from one of its staples.

Modern Age - Comic books from the late 1970's to the present.

One Shot - A comic book published only once.

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Origin - Details a comic book character's creation.

Painted Cover - When a painting is used on the cover of a comic book instead of the standard line drawing.

Pedigree - Indicates that a book comes from a famous collection.

Penciler - The artist that creates the original line drawings for a comic book.

P.G.X. - The Professional Grading eXperts, LLC, a dedicated and rapidly growing company offering impartial, third-party certification of comic books.

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Photo Cover - When a photograph is used on the cover of a comic book instead of the standard line drawing.

Platinum Age - Beginning in 1897 with newspaper reprints, this is the first age of comics.

Price Variant - When the cover price differs from the normal cover price of a comic book series.

Quarterly - A comic book that is published every three months (4 times a year).

Restoration - The art of repairing a comic book to improve its appearance.

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Rolled Spine - A bowing of the spine usually causing uneven pages, caused when the reader folds back the pages of a comic book, or by improper storage.

Silver Age - The publishing period for comic books beginning in 1956 to the early seventies.

Slabbed - Used to describe the process of certifying and encapsulating a comic book.

Spine - A comic book's folded and stapled edge.

Spine Roll - Same as Rolled Spine, described above.

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Stress Lines - Creases or wrinkle marks varying in size that move outward from the spine of the comic book.

Subscription Crease - Caused when a comic book is folded for mailing, it is a large crease down the middle of the book.

Title Page - Usually on the first page of a comic book, it shows the title of the story.

Trimmed Cover - When a trimmer has been used to cut the edge or edges of a cover to give it a sharper or better preserved look.

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Variant Cover - When different artwork is used on a cover of the same issue of a comic book title.

Warehouse Copy - A comic book that originally came from a publisher's warehouse.

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