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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1787-1801 Student and master > History Painting c.1799-1807 > Egyptian Details Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner A Castle among Trees, with Hills Beyond c.1799-1800

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Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘A Castle among Trees, with Hills Beyond’ c.1799-1800
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 129 Verso:
A Castle among Trees, with Hills Beyond c.1799–1800
D03968
Turner Bequest LXVI 128a
Pencil on blue laid paper, 83 x 166 mm
Stamped in black ‘LXVI – 128a’ bottom right, ascending vertically
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
With the pages turned horizontally, the drawing continues on folio 130 recto opposite (D03969; Turner Bequest LXVI 129). Finberg’s suggestion that this could show Conway Castle1 is not wholly convincing. The large square keep may be that of a Roman castle, such as Porchester or Rochester, but the hills and woods that surround it suggest that it is in Wales; the slight sketch on folio 130 verso (D03970; Turner Bequest LXVI 129a) may show Chepstow on the Wye, in which case this too may be Chepstow.

Andrew Wilton
May 2013

1
See Finberg 1909, I, p.168.

How to cite

Andrew Wilton, ‘A Castle among Trees, with Hills Beyond c.1799–1800 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, May 2013, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, April 2016, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-a-castle-among-trees-with-hills-beyond-r1180208, accessed 25 April 2024.