Tintin Forums

Can anyone ID the picture shown on page 56, on a wall in Marlinspike, when the Captain is doing the jig?
I know Hergé often liked to insert famous works of art in the stories, and was wondering if this was indeed one, or simply something he created from scratch?

It's true Hergé used some real artworks as sources for paintings in Marlinspike (there's an Alfred Sisley painting of some poplar trees in one book), but when you say 'famous works of art' you might be stretching the definition of famous a bit, since I can't think of any really famous works at Marlinspike, and even that Sisley painting isn't that well-known.

It could be based on a real work, or it could be a made up picture, something to show that Haddock liked to collect art, particularly with a nautical theme. The picture itself looks quite Hergéan in style; the lines, the colour and the style of waves and clouds. Perhaps it's a metaphor for Haddock's predicament at that particular moment, he was feeling like a shipwreck, all washed up, on the rocks?

I thought I'd open this thread up a bit more to include general decor, because I was looking at the very same frame (on page 56 of The Castafiore Emerald) just a few weeks ago and what really caught my eye was the fantastic wobbly sideboard/drawers that Haddock has by the door! It's like art nouveau type of furniture, although I don't think it's that, and so unusual it looks as if it was based on a real piece. Either that or Hergé had a very shaky hand when he drew it!

Anyone know of, or recognise, this particular type of furniture?

It is certainly not Art Nouveau. I would guess Biedermeyer or maybe Louis XV(?).

Biedermeyer, I'm not so sure. I'm no expert, but I always thought Biedermeyer was less ornate, with straight lines and clean curves - very modern looking. But, Louis XV - you might be on to something there. The images of furniture I've seen by googling it has similar ornaments and those type of curved legs.

Nestor mentions in reply to Castafiore's ignorance ("Henri XV, n'est pas?") that the furniture in that bedroom was Louis XIII. This would fit with what I think is the likely date of Marlinspike Hall - I'm going by Cheverny, which was built 1625-30, in the Louis XIII era. The furniture in the bedroom has the look of the era (similar to the English Jacobean style). And is that a painting of Louis XIII on the wall?

The painting looks similar to The Storm on the Sea of Galilee by Rembrandt van Rijn. Perhaps Hergé was portraying that painting?

Hmmmm... not very similar. The painting in "Emerald" has a ship covered by a wave, while in Rembrandt's painting we see more of the ship than the waves. Good guess, but I think we had better keep on searching.

I think the chest of drawers in the hall is probably Rococo/ Late Baroque, so maybe 18th century; I'd not be at all surprised to find that Hergé found his reference in the interiors at Cheverny either.
There's a photo of a room in Cheverny on this blog-page (you'll need to scroll down), with a similar (although by no means identical) side-board, so it is the sort of period antique which would fit into the setting at Marlinspike.

You can still buy reproduction furniture in this style, although nowadays it is often painted metalic silver or gold if interior decorators get their hands on it...!

Yep, I think you've hit the nail (or perhaps the Rococo dowel) on the head. Some googling of Rococo / Late Baroque furniture images was proof enough for me, so thanks for that. Ever thought about going for a presenter's job on Antiques Roadshow? ;-)

That's the interesting thing about Cheverny; some of the interior decor - as well as the date it was built (as mentioned above in the Louis XIII bedroom) - seems to have found its way into the Hall. So it's influenced in more ways than just the exterior look of the building.

Are you sure? Although granted this work is not a household name when comparing it to something like the Mona Lisa, it's indeed a famous work of art by an esteemed artist.

I actually started this thread stating that Hergé placed some famous works within the adventures not simply Marlinspike as you suggest.

One could argue that the Picasso and Miro portraits which feature on Rastapopoulos's yacht in The Red Sea Sharks (p36 & 51) are indeed in this class, and another worthy mention is Al Khaznehor The Treasury(p 28), a classic architectural example found in the same book.

Yes, I'm quite sure this work is not a household name. I'm not claiming to be an expert, but I do remember Sisley being mentioned as one of the impressionists when I studied for Art History A level and I never got the impression (if you'll pardon the pun) that he was one of the more well-known (at least not when I was studying it, which was quite a while back!)

I think his reputation has grown over the years. There was an exhibition of his work in the early 90s in London, I think, but at that point he was (and rightly or wrongly probably still is) one of the lesser known impressionists. Don't get me wrong, I really like his work, and I like the particular piece, "La Canal Du Loing", which hangs in Marlinspike. I think his work has a certain serenity, it's somehow very calming to look at, (which is perhaps why the Captain likes it?). But, esteemed artist, yes, famous work, most definitely no.


I wasn't actually suggesting that at all, although reading back now your post wasn't very clear. I was simply trying to keep the thread within the subject of paintings at Marlinspike, since the title you originally gave it was about the painting of the ship at sea in Castafiore Emerald (which I then broadened to include general decor).


Now we're about to stray off-topic, so apologies in advance and forgive me for this but, what Picasso? What Miró? If that really is supposed to be a Miró on page 36 of The Red Sea Sharks then it's not one I've ever seen. Perhaps I'm wrong, I'm just guessing, is it not rather meant to be a pastiche of Miró?

And as for the picture on page 51, well I'm not sure how anyone could tell what that is supposed to be, or who painted it. But if it really is a Picasso then hats off to the person who first identified it!