Ancient One

Born centuries ago in the Himalayan village of Kamar-Taj, the man called Yao devoted his life to mastering the mystic arts, eventually rising to become Earth's Sorcerer Supreme. He later took the young surgeon Stephen Strange as his most celebrated student and successor.

Few characters can claim to have shaped an entire corner of the Marvel Universe the way the Ancient One has — this enigmatic figure stepped onto the Silver Age stage in Strange Tales #110 in 1963, conjured into existence by Stan Lee, H. E. Huntley, and Dick Ayers, and has never really left. Over six decades of Marvel history, the Ancient One has woven through Strange Tales, Doctor Strange, and Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme, accumulating 108 catalog appearances and no fewer than seven key issues that collectors prize. The company is extraordinary — sharing pages with Stephen Strange, Baron Mordo, Clea, and the dread Dormammu places this character at the very epicenter of Marvel's mystical mythology. If you want to understand the soul of Marvel's supernatural world, the Ancient One is where that story begins.