Considered blasphemous by Muslims, one of the Jyllands-Posten Mohammed cartoons is a hit with collectors

Kurt Westergaard’s controversial drawing of Islamic prophet Mohammed with a bomb in his turban is proving to be big business for printers, art galleries and – not least – Westergaard himself.

Skanderborg’s Galleri Draupner, which will soon be exhibiting several works by Westergaard, indicated it has sold numerous autographed prints of Westergaard’s illustration.

B.T. newspaper reports that the gallery has asked famed auction house Sotheby’s in London to fix a selling price for the original drawing, which Westergaard is considering selling. A top American collector has appraised the illustration’s value at $150,000.

A Baltic-based printing company is also profiting from the work. It has sold 870 copies of the 1,000 copied and sells for $250 each.

The Jyllands-Posten Mohammed drawings were first printed in September 2005. The move touched off numerous violent protests worldwide from offended Muslims and resulted in extensive damage to several Danish embassies.