Day 12
Red Rackham’s Treasure
Concluding the story begun in The Secret of the Unicorn, Red Rackham’s Treasure follows Tintin and friends as they search for the pirate booty procured by Captain Haddock’s ancestor, Sir Francis Haddock, in the West Indies. They receive some unexpected help in the form of a hard-of-hearing inventor named Professor Calculus, who would go on to become one of the most endearing characters of the series. (Hergé admitted that the character was one “whom I never suspected would take on such importance.”) It’s a lot of fun, with some submarine and diving adventures, humor from the Thompsons, and an unexpected (but satisfying) ending.
24 Days of Tintin Special Merchandise!
Day Twelve: Red Rackham’s Treasure Special Package. Expires 8:00 am December 2. Includes a fantastic pop-up book with scenes and details from the story; a greeting card with a scene from the book; and two figurines. Regularly priced at $64.35, this package is available for $45.05 – 30% off – for a 24-hour period only. Purchase it now.
Product details
Pop-up book: Wonderful large-scale pop-up book with scenes and details from Red Rackham’s Treasure. In full color, hardcover, and in French. Measures approximately: 14 x 11.5 x 1 inches. Greeting Card: Lovely greeting card from Red Rackham’s Treasure. In full color. Measures approximately 5 x 5 inches. Blank on the inside. Comes with one envelope. Figurines: The book introduces the reader to Professor Calculus and centers the plot on Haddock, so you have to have the figurines.
The Tintin map was especially created by Chris Tregenza who run’s a Tintin blog on the forthcoming Tintin movie. A full map showing all of Tintin’s 23 journeys is available for purchase from his site.
FUN FACTS ABOUT RED RACKHAM’S TREASURE
Brought to you by Tintinology
Calculus’ shark submarine was science fiction when Hergé created it. Small submersibles were in use by the military but these were primitive devices that the driver sat on and requiring the use of scuba gear. In 2008 Fabien Cousteau, grandson of famous underwater explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau, used Herge’s shark submarine as inspiration for his own submersible that allowed him to photograph Great White Sharks in action. See TintinBlog and Tintinology:
There was a Tintin exhibition at The Maritime Museum at Stockholm, Sweden (the exhibition is or was on a world AFAIK). Obviously, a great deal was be about the two treasure hunt stories. Interesting to read what Hergé got right and what he got wrong. For example, a wooden ship like the Unicorn would soon be eaten by worms in tropical saline water, unlike the Wasa ship which was preserved by cold, brackish water.