A drawing by Tintin is to be sold at auction in Paris on Thursday.

This extremely rare sketch is however the subject of a battle between the beneficiaries and the heirs of the publisher Casterman, each claiming their rights to this work, which could be sold between 2 and 3 million euros. 

It's an auction that will make all Tintin fans dream!

The famous drawing of the

Blue Lotus

, representing Tintin and Snowy coming out of a jar facing a huge dragon, is to be put on sale Thursday in Paris, at the auction house Artcurial.

But this sale is controversial because the beneficiaries of Hergé dispute it.

Nick Rodwell, the husband of Hergé's widow, believes that this drawing should come back to them since he is from Hergé.

But Artcurial comic book specialist Éric Leroy says Hergé gave it to publisher Louis Casterman's son, Jean-Paul, when he was 7 years old.

Today, it is the Casterman heirs who have decided to sell it.

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"An exceptional design"

“I personally met Jean-Paul Casterman in the mid-90s, who explained his story to me,” remembers Eric Leroy.

"I had been tracking this drawing for 30 years. I asked Jean-Paul Casterman: 'Do you want to sell this drawing?'

He told me: 'It was a gift from Hergé when I was a child. I really care about it.'

So, until his death, he kept this drawing preciously. "

#Tintin: the new case of the Blue Lotus https://t.co/pF4rtWADCX via @ Figaro_Culturepic.twitter.com / ELZLPEbotJ

- Olivier Delcroix (@Delcroixx) July 15, 2020

According to the beneficiaries, this gift is a pure fable.

This is also what Benoît Peeters, specialist in Tintin, thinks.

"I do not really believe in the hypothesis of the gift to Jean-Paul Casterman. I think it is rather a drawing that has remained and that we forgot to return. The most important thing is that it s 'This is an exceptional design, ”he says.  

The sketch could be sold for between 2 and 3 million euros 

Another point of contention: for experts, this is a sketch, but for Artcurial, this drawing is the initial cover of the

Blue Lotus

.

Estimated between 2 and 3 million euros, this drawing could beat the comic book sales record and even Hergé's record.

In 2014, its cover pages were sold for 2.5 million euros. 

Why is this drawing so expensive?

Because it is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful in color of the designer.

It is an extremely rare and iconic piece, the

Blue Lotus

 being known around the world.

In addition, in recent years, the prices of comic strips, which have become very popular, have been soaring.

It started with Bilal, who sold one of his for more than 370,000 euros.

The market is therefore very popular with enthusiasts and collectors who want to invest.