J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1802-18 Academician and professor > West Country 1811 > Devonshire Coast, No.1 Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner A Hulk or the Hull of a Warship from the Stern 1811

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Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘A Hulk or the Hull of a Warship from the Stern’ 1811
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 220 Recto:
A Hulk or the Hull of a Warship from the Stern 1811
D08759
Turner Bequest CXXIII 217
Pen and ink on white wove writing paper, 75 x 117 mm
Inscribed by John Ruskin in red ink ‘217’ top left, ascending vertically
Stamped in black ‘CXXIII – 217’ top right, ascending vertically
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
The drawing is unique in this sketchbook in being in ink rather than pencil; there are, however, extensive ink drafts of poetry (see the introduction). It seems likely that the sketch was made from memory while writing rather than from direct observation.
Turner recorded various warships or hulks in the waters around Plymouth, for example on folio 195 recto (D08717; CXXIII 192); for other views in the area see under folio 3 verso (D08367).

Matthew Imms
June 2011

How to cite

Matthew Imms, ‘A Hulk or the Hull of a Warship from the Stern 1811 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, June 2011, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, December 2012, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-a-hulk-or-the-hull-of-a-warship-from-the-stern-r1137237, accessed 25 April 2024.