DALLAS, TX.- An incredible artistic ensemble from the 2017 Fleer Ultra Spider-Man - Legacy Insert Set is among the extraordinary items that will be up for grabs in Deadcode’s Debut Release Trading Cards and Original Art Signature® Auction at Heritage Auctions May 30-31.

The auction is a single-consignor event featuring the collection of Steven Morgan, a cybersecurity expert and a member of the band Deadcode. It will be split into two sessions, one on each day: Friday’s first session will include 173 lots of trading cards, complete sets and original art from Magic: The Gathering; Saturday’s second session boasts 225 lots of original Marvel art, sketch cards, graded non-sports trading cards and uncut sheets.

The auction is a celebration of Morgan’s life in creativity, innovation and collecting. While building companies and writing music, he spent years assembling one of the most impressive private collections in pop culture, a trove that includes a pristine 10 Alpha Black Lotus, one of the top three graded Magic: The Gathering Alpha sets, Silver Age Marvel comics, Garbage Pail Kids, Star Wars memorabilia and original trading card artwork.

The 2017 Fleer Ultra Spider-Man - Legacy Insert Set: Spider-Man vs. Venom & Carnage - Original Artwork, Preliminary Sketch & 3-Card Set CGC Auth by Greg Hildebrandt that is featured in this auction includes three stages of the artwork by the artist who, like his brother, Tim, is a celebrated fantasy and science fiction artist whose notable works include The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars and Magic: The Gathering. The lot includes three incarnations of the artwork for the three-part battle scene featuring Spider-Man, Venom and Carnage: an original sketch, the full painting of the trading card and a three-card legacy set, with each character featured on one of the cards and Hildebrandt’s signature on the back of each.

“Usually, Marvel card original trading card art is sought after by individual character collectors to find their favorite hero or villain. Why I think this one is fantastic as an original art piece is because it features three of the most desirable characters in a single piece of art, and also by a legendary artist: Greg Hildebrandt,” says Morgan. “This set is one of those top sets put out in 2017 by the Fleer Ultra series. The Hildebrandt brothers were the painters of the most iconic and recognizable sets in Marvel cards with their 1994 Masterpieces set (some of which are part of this auction, too). I think this piece has that same aesthetic, except with a modern release.”

A 1994 Fleer Marvel Masterpieces No. 115 Spider-Man - Original Trading Card Artwork, Preliminary Sketch & PSA 10 Card by Greg and Tim Hildebrandt features the work of both Hildebrandt brothers. This lot also delivers multiple levels of this extraordinary image of Spider-Man as he scales the side of a building with the chaos of the city below him: the original acrylic painting, a preliminary pencil sketch and the PSA 10-graded trading card.

One of the most powerful images in the entire collection is a 1994 Fleer Marvel Masterpieces No. 8 Black Panther - Original Trading Card Artwork, Preliminary Sketch & PSA 10 Card by Greg and Tim Hildebrandt that depicts the character hurtling straight toward the viewer through each piece of the set, which includes the original painting used for the front of the card, the preliminary pencil sketch and the 1994 Fleer Marvel Masterpieces No. 8 Black Panther trading card. This extraordinary lot comes directly from the artists, who wrote a joint statement on the back of the card that spotlights the realism the brothers incorporated into their work using reflected light and a naturalistic setting to enhance the storytelling and emotional tone of the artwork: “This is one of the few paintings in this set with a natural environment. Black Panther’s costume is made green by light bouncing from the grass!”

The auction features artwork by several important artists, including Joe Jusko, the celebrated fantasy, pin-up and cover illustration artist. Among Jusko’s 10 lots in the auction are his 2016 Upper Deck Marvel Masterpieces No. 52 Thor - Original Trading Card Artwork, 2016 Upper Deck Marvel Masterpieces Canvas High Series Subset No. 93 Hulk - Original Trading Card Artwork and 2016 Upper Deck Marvel Masterpieces Holofoil Subset No. 9 of 17 Punisher - Original Trading Card Artwork; each is signed by the artist.

Those who collect uncut sheets will be tempted by a trio of lots in their auction, including: a 2016 Upper Deck Marvel Masterpieces - What If… Variant Cover Uncut Sheet that features 90 cards in a framed display that originally was available as a limited insert; a 1992 Marvel Masterpieces Uncut 24-Card Press Sheet that was issued as a prototype promo and distributed exclusively at the 1992 National Sports Collectors Convention and includes an original sketch of Venom by Joe Jusko; and a 2023 Skybox Marvel Masterpieces - Variant Cover Set that featured uncut sheets No. 1-90 in a rare two-sheet uncut set from the 2022 Upper Deck Marvel Masterpieces trading card series; the set was not available for direct purchase, offered instead as redemption items found in sealed packs.

Among the Magic: The Gathering treasures that can be found in Friday’s first session is a Black Lotus Limited Edition (Beta) CGC Trading Card Game NM/Mint 8 that is the most desired card in the game. It also is among the most powerful cards in the game, a group known as the Power Nine. The offered copy is one of 3,000 from the second printing for the original set.

Also offered are complete Magic: The Gathering sets, including a Legends Sealed Booster Box, a Limited Edition (Alpha) Sealed Starter Deck and The Dark Sealed Booster Box.

Other top Magic: The Gathering lots include, but are not limited to:

• A Library of Alexandria Arabian Nights CGC Trading Card Game Gem Mint 10

• A Bayou Unlimited Edition BGS Trading Card Game Mint 9

• A Tropical Island Unlimited Edition BGS Trading Card Game Gem Mint 9.5

• A Multiverse Legends Serialized Complete Set of 65 CGC Graded Trading Card Game

“My top two favorite hobbies are Marvel Trading Cards and Art, and Magic: The Gathering,” says Morgan. “This collection highlights those two aspects, and provides a bit of a historic journey through each hobby by containing things old, and new. For Magiccards, it has the most iconic vintage cards and sealed boxes ever made in its first year of release, like the Black Lotus, and goes all the way up to some of the most recently released chase cards and uncut sheets, like the serialized Lord of the Rings cards. And with Marvel, there are cards from early sets and modern rarities. As for the art: this auction has some works that span across all of my favorite artists that contributed to the Masterpieces sets — painters like Dan Dos Santos, Simone Bianchi, Joe Jusko and many more.”

All winning bidders will receive a limited-edition variant of Deadcode’s debut album: Nothing and Nowhere.