Herge's Tintin artwork to highlight Sotheby's comics aucton

Sotheby's first ever comic strip sale is set to feature a magnificent selection of artwork from Herge's Tintin on July 4.

Herge Tintin Crab with the Golden Claws
Can this work get near the current world record on July 4?


The sale is being held in memory of the French comic book artist Jean Giraud, better known by his pseudonym Moebius, following his death in March this year. Moebius was one of the foremost French artists working in the field who left an unrivalled impression on the area.

Sotheby's has drafted in internationally renowned expert Jean-Marc Thevenet to curate the auction. He commented: "The auction reflects our conviction that comic strips have become an art-form in their own right…In short, the sale aims to be a catalogue raisonne of the first one hundred years of comic strips!"

The top lot of the Herge selection will be supplied by a full page Indian ink drawing from The Crab with the Golden Claws. The work is the third full page piece from the earlier black and white edition of 1941, before colour editions were produced from 1943-47. A colour copy of the illustration will also be sold in the lot, with an estimate of $296,000-315,000.

The auction can expect renewed interest in Herge's work, after the original cover from Tintin in America beat the world record for comic book cover art earlier this month at another French sale, when it sold for $1.6m

The auction will also see intense bidding for Moebius' original cover for La Deviation, which is expected to bring $56,000-69,000. The 1980 artwork marked the artist's return to comic strips under his new pseudonym, Gir, with this example standing as his finest creation while working under the name.

The comic strip market is emerging as one of the most exciting areas of collecting, with rising values offering great investment potential. See Paul Fraser Collectibles' top five reasons to buy here.

We also have our own excellent range of comic books, strips and artwork, including this charming sketch of EH Shepard's Winnie the Pooh.

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