'Calton Hill and the Palace of Holyrood', Joseph Mallord William Turner

Artwork details

Artist

Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775‑1851)

Title

Calton Hill and the Palace of Holyrood

From Bass Rock and Edinburgh Sketchbook

Turner Bequest CLXV

Date 1818

MediumGraphite on paper

Dimensionssupport: 99 x 159 mm

Collection

Tate

Acquisition Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856

Reference

D13427

Turner Bequest CLXV 58

View this artwork by appointment, at Tate Britain's Prints and Drawings Rooms

Turner's sketchbooks

View this artwork in the Bass Rock and Edinburgh Sketchbook

Catalogue entry

Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851

Folio 60 Recto:

Calton Hill and the Palace of Holyrood 1818

D13427
Turner Bequest CLXV 58

Pencil on white laid paper, 99 x 159 mm
Inscribed in pencil by Turner ‘Little higher than other | Houses of the [?]P B’ top left
Stamped in black ‘CLXV 58’ top right running vertically

Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856

References

This drawing from Arthur’s Seat, the edge of which is visible at the bottom right of the drawing, looks towards the Palace and Abbey of Holyrood, with Nelson’s Monument perched on Calton Hill above. Calton Gaol is shown to the left of the picture, and the Firth of Forth can just be seen in the distance behind Calton Hill. It is not certain whether the obscure sketch at the bottom right of the page is part of this drawing or a separate study.

There is something unnatural about this drawing, as if it were composed of separate parts like a collage. This effect is created by the use of several points of perspective, so while Holyrood Abbey is seen from above, the Palace looks like it is drawn from straight on, and Calton Hill from below. These main architectural and natural features are also drawn more heavily and with more detail than the surrounding landscape, making them look out of place.

Thomas Ardill
November 2007

Read this catalogue entry in full

This catalogue entry is part of: David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, December 2012.