Every comic strip enthusiasts knows that Brussels is the capital of comic strips. The ninth art is an integral part of the region's culture and heritage. Brussels lives and breathes comic strips, with dedicated museums, galleries, murals, publishing houses, schools, festivals and bookshops on every street corner. The reason this art form is so present here today is that the capital has been home to and inspired numerous authors for almost a century. Brussels is a veritable breeding ground of creativity.

It was in 1929, that Hergé brought his most famous hero, Tintin, to life in Le Petit Vingtième, the children's supplement to Brussels newspaper Le Vingtième Siècle. He was so successful that he devoted 24 albums to him, in which he included countless references to Brussels.

Certain places, objects, expressions and names from Brussels appear subtly in his panels. There's the Royal Palace in King Ottokar's Sceptre, for example, and the Royal Theatre of La Monnaie in The Seven Crystal Balls. But the best-known reference is undoubtedly the flea market on place du Jeu de Balle in the Marolles district. This is where, at the beginning of The Secret of the Unicorn, Tintin discovers the model of the Unicorn, the object of so many mysteries. The good-natured atmosphere of Les Marolles can also be found in the adventures of Quick and Flupke. In fact, there's a mural dedicated to them in the heart of this district, which was so dear to Hergé's heart.