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

The subject of this sketch is the town of Le Pont-de-Beauvoisin which lies on the River Guiers, approximately twenty miles west of Chambéry. The location forms part of the border between Isère and Savoy, and indeed the town is actually divided into two separate settlements, both sharing the same name but situated respectively on the south and north banks of the river. Since 1815 Savoy had been part of the Italian Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia and consequently the nineteenth-century traveller crossing the border from France was obliged to present their luggage for inspection at custom houses in both places.1

Turner made a number of sketches of the town, reflecting the fact that he stopped here long enough to wander around and explore on foot, see folio 57 (D14080). This view is taken from the banks on the Savoy side of the river and looks south-east towards the single-arched bridge in the centre, and the historic Carmelite church (Église des Carmes) beyond. A variant view from the opposite direction can be found on folio 59 verso (D14085).