Deadpool and Wolverine’s comic origins go up for auction for hurricane relief

Heritage Auctions has put on the block some priceless works of comic art, with some benefiting the Red Cross Hurricane Relief Fund.

“Priceless” is of course not literal, seeing as bidding has already begun for original art for page 14 from The New Mutants No. 98 — otherwise known as the debut of Rob Liefeld‘s Wade Wilson/Deadpool — and bidding reached a quarter million bucks within minutes. 

The page that hit the block hasn’t been seen since it entered a private collection in the 1990s, “just as Deadpool was taking over the Marvel Universe like few characters in its storied history,” Heritage says. 

“Deadpool’s debut in New Mutants No. 98 was as much a cultural phenomenon as a page in comic book history,” says Heritage Auctions Executive Vice President Todd Hignite. “For fans and collectors, this is an unparalleled opportunity to own a piece of the origin story that would eventually define a generation of comic book storytelling.”

Also up for grabs is comics legend John Romita Sr.‘s original concept art for the character Wolverine from 1974. The bids for that piece are already soaring past $105,000. A portion of the proceeds will go to hurricane relief.  

Also hitting the block is original art from another Marvel icon, Steve Ditko: The Amazing Spider-Man #8 from 1964, as well as Frank Miller and Klaus Janson‘s original art from Batman: The Dark Knight Returns #2 Dark Knight Triumphant.

Many more pieces of comic book history are available as part of Heritage’s Comics & Comic Art Signature Auction, which officially runs from Nov. 21 to Nov. 24. Check out all the details here.