Beijing, WenLian, 1984-1987.
23 titles, each bound in 2 volumes, making 46 volumes oblong 16mo. Preserved in the editor’s illustrated wrappers. Modern black protective box.
Dimensions of the albums: 123 x 91 mm.
Protective box dimensions: 272 x 210 x 110 mm.
First Chinese edition, complete, entirely redrawn after Herge.
Each title was published in 2 volumes; the cover of the first volume is adapted from the first edition’s one, in the oblong format of the edition, while an image extracted from the album illustrates the cover of the second volume.
The compositions are printed in black and white, in a reduced format.
Just after Hergé’s death, and without authorization, the publisher WenLian launched this pirate reissue of Tintin (Ding Ding in Chinese) in the People’s Republic of China. In a format totally different from the original, the albums were completely redesigned. The first releases in 1984 were Tintin au Congo, Tintin en Amérique, Le Lotus Bleu, Le Trésor de Rackham le Rouge, Objectif Lune et Vol 714 pour Sydney. In 1986, the album title of Crabe aux pinces d’or was translated by an explanatory periphrase: L’Histoire de la capture du gang qui fait du trafic de drogue en utilisant des craes aux pinces en or. In 1987, the second volume of L’Affaire Tournesol featured a gross printing error: from one page to the next, the story returned to the first.
Thirty months after the start of this publishing adventure, the last titles appeared: L’Ile noire, Coke en stock and finally Tintin au Tibet, renamed Tintin et le mystérieux homme des neiges, probably because of the conflictual relationship between China and Tibet.
This complete edition contains the following 23 titles Tintin au Congo (1984), Tintin en Amérique (1984), Le Lotus Bleu (1984), L’Oreille cassée (1984), Le Secret de la Licorne (1984), L’Etoile mystérieuse (1984), Le Trésor de Rackham le Rouge (1984), On a marché sur la Lune (1984), L’Affaire Tournesol (1984), Tintin au Tibet (1984), Vol 714 pour Sydney (1984), Les Cigares du Pharaon (1985), Le Temple du soleil (1985),Tintin au pays de l’or noir (1985), Les Sept Boules de cristal (1985), Le Sceptre d’Ottokar (1985), Les Bijoux de la Castafiore (1985), Tintin et le Lac aux requins (1985), Objectif Lune (1985), Le Crabe aux pinces d’or (1986), Tintin et les Picaros (1986), L’Ile noire (1987), Coke en stock (1987).
It wasn’t until 2001 that Tintin was officially published in China.
Extremely rare set, complete with 46 volumes preserved in the original wrappers in exceptional condition.