An archive of production artwork from Carl Sagan's groundbreaking TV series Cosmos (1980) is offered at Heritage Auctions.

It's one of the more intriguing lots in a sale of fine books and manuscripts taking place in Dallas on September 15.   

Carl Sagan and artist Jon Lomberg were longtime collaborators

It consists of 150 items ranging from storyboard and production documents, to a set of 62 original paintings and special effects prints by art director Jon Lomberg.

These include the original sketch for the show's cosmic calendar - which maps the birth of the universe and the origins of humanity onto a standard year.

In this illustration humans show up at 20:10 on December 31, with Columbus arriving in America at one second to midnight.

Cosmos remains the most popular science show of all time and was greatly influential.

It's credited with inspiring a generation of scientists and has been viewed by an audience of around 500m around the world.

Part of the series' appeal was Sagan's exploration of humanity's place in the universe.

He was a firm believer in the importance of mankind.

In the show he suggests that "we are a way for the cosmos to know itself."

The collection will auction with an opening bid of $10,000.

You can take a look at all our TV and movie memorabilia for sale here.

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