Unicorn (Tintin)
The Unicorn | |
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Publication information | |
First appearance | The Secret of the Unicorn (1943) |
The Unicorn (
In the Tintin adventures, the Unicorn is the setting of a battle between
and his friends in an attempt to locate Red Rackham's treasure.Creation
The Unicorn was inspired by the 64-gun
Hergé consulted the archives at the
After publication of The Secret of the Unicorn, Hergé's German publisher Carlsen Verlag gave him an antique model of a 17th-century Danish ship called the Enhjørningen (The Unicorn). Until that moment, Hergé had no idea that a ship with that name, complete with a unicorn figurehead, had ever actually existed.[10]
In The Adventures of Tintin
Fictional history
The Secret of the Unicorn is partially set in 1676. In the English translation, the Unicorn sails under the
A 2011 feature film adaptation of both Tintin books retells the story of the Unicorn. The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn directed by Steven Spielberg and produced by Peter Jackson was released in October–December 2011.[13]
Plot role
While sailing in the West Indies in 1676, the Unicorn, commanded by Sir Francis Haddock, is seized and captured by a group of pirates led by Red Rackham. The pirates hoist a red pennant—no life would be spared. During the battle, Sir Francis is hit and loses consciousness. Later, the members of the Unicorn crew still alive are killed or thrown overboard. Sir Francis regains consciousness, finding himself tied to the mainmast. The pirate ship is damaged and sinking, so Red Rackham moves his treasure on board the Unicorn. The ship then sails to an uninhabited island. When anchored near the shore of the island, Sir Francis manages to free himself and goes below deck to the Unicorn's gunpowder stores. Whilst there, he encounters Rackham for the final time, killing him in a sword fight. Before escaping in the ship's jolly boat, he is able to set fire to the gunpowder by means of a slow-burning fuse, causing the Unicorn (with Rackham's drunken crew and presumably Red Rackham's treasure still aboard) to explode and sink.[14]
In the present day, Tintin, his dog Snowy, and his friends Captain Haddock and Professor Calculus follow coordinates that Sir Francis had left his three sons in a strange riddle hidden in three model ships of the Unicorn. Reaching the coordinates, they discover the island and, upon diving, they find the wreck of the Unicorn. Although they recover various artefacts from it, they do not find the treasure. Back in Belgium, Tintin realises that Sir Francis' message referred, not to the location of the Unicorn, but to a globe mounted on a statue in Sir Francis' former country home. Understanding now that Francis would never have left the treasure but would have taken it with him to his home, Tintin locates the coordinates to the treasure on the globe, presses a secret button he finds there, and discovers Red Rackham's treasure hidden inside.[15]
Related articles
References
Notes
Footnotes
- ^ a b Assouline 2009, p. 88; Farr 2001, p. 111; Peeters 2012, pp. 144–145; Peeters 1989, p. 75.
- ^ a b c Assouline 2009, p. 88.
- ^ Assouline 2009, p. 88; Farr 2001, p. 111; Peeters 2012, pp. 144–145; Goddin 2009, p. 116.
- ^ Assouline 2009, pp. 88, 243 (footnote 56).
- ^ Peeters 1989, p. 75; Goddin 2009, p. 104.
- ^ a b c d Peeters 1989, p. 75; Farr 2001, p. 111.
- ^ Assouline 2009, p. 88; Farr 2001, p. 111; Peeters 1989, p. 75.
- ^ Peeters 2012, p. 145; Goddin 2009, p. 107.
- ^ a b c Peeters 1989, p. 75.
- ^ Peeters 1989, p. 74.
- ^ Davies 2004.
- ^ Lavery 2003, p. 158.
- ^ The Daily Telegraph: Michael Farr 2011.
- ^ Hergé 1943, pp. 15–26.
- ^ Hergé 1944, pp. 1–62.
Bibliography
- ISBN 978-0-19-539759-8.
- Davies, J.D. (2004). "Haddock, Sir Richard (c.1629–1715)". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/11849. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ISBN 978-0-7195-5522-0.
- Farr, Michael (17 October 2011). "The inspiration behind Steven Spielberg's Tintin". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 19 October 2011. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
- ISBN 978-0-86719-724-2.
- ISBN 978-1405206228.
- ISBN 978-0-316-35834-7.
- Lavery, Brian (2003). The Ship of the Line — Volume 1: The Development of the Battlefleet 1650-1850. Conway Maritime Post. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.
- ISBN 978-0-416-14882-4.
- ISBN 978-1-4214-0454-7.