A RARE DRAWING from one of Tintin’s most famous comic books, “Explorers on the Moon,” was sold today for €1.55 million, the Parisian auction house Artcurial said.

The sale, which was expected to fetch between €700,000 and €900,000, broke records for the highest amount paid for a single cartoon drawing.

The original drawing, in Chinese ink from Belgian cartoonist Herge, shows the fearless reporter, his white dog Snowy and his friend Captain Haddock in spacesuits, walking on the moon for the first time and looking at the Earth.

They can be seen, on page 26 of the book, running and making big jumps, to their surprise because of the lower gravity on the moon.

Shutterstock / Imladris Shutterstock / Imladris / Imladris

The book, first published in 1954, is a favourite among comic strips lovers.

In a separate auction sale on Saturday by Christie’s, another original drawing from “Explorers on the Moon” was sold for €600,000. Page 59 of the book shows the rocket reaching Earth in dramatic circumstances. The book’s heroes aren’t visible.

“The Adventures of Tintin” have been translated into 70-plus languages and sold tens of millions of copies. They have been made into a movie in 2011 by Steven Spielberg.

The sales come as Herge, often referred to as the father of the European comic strip, is the subject of a major exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris until mid-January.

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