PARIS — Artcurial cemented its place as an auction leader in the comic strip field with its November 18–19 auction that saw an original drawing by Herge from “Explorers on the Moon,” a beloved drawing starring Tintin, attain an auction record price of $1.59 million (including the buyers premium and price was converted from euros to US dollars at presstime) during the second day of the auction.

Herge, who is seeing a renewed interest in his work with an retrospective exhibition on view nearby at the Grand Palais, was represented here with a historical plate from the album, On a marche sur la lune, published in 1954, which sold here to a European collector, setting a world auction record for a single plate by Herge as well as for a post-war plate by the artist. Two bidders in the room and one on the phone battled for the plate.

“This is one of the most important plates from after the war and like Tintin au Tibet and Les Bijoux de la Castafiore, is part of a mythical album which fascinates collectors and comic amateurs,” said Eric Leroy, Artcurial’s department expert. “Les Aventures de Tintin have crossed centuries and accompanied different generations. Comic strip collectors are truly passionate and the market is strong.”

For more information, www.artcurial.com or +33 1 4299 2020.