Joseph Mallord William Turner

Inverted relative to the sketchbook’s foliation, this rural prospect is from a vantage point above the road marked in the foreground; perhaps Turner’s carriage is indicated there, pausing near a small building. Beyond the wooded slopes on the left is a prospect where successive hills recede, apparently along a broad, meandering river valley without specific landmarks. The immediately adjacent pages show urban views of Rimini, and this scene was possibly in the vicinity.

Cecilia Powell has commented on the relatively uneventful phase of Turner’s journey between leaving Bologna and reaching Rimini (folios 43 recto–60 verso; D14566–D14598; Turner Bequest CLXXVI 39a–56a);1 for his overall route south-east between Bologna and Ancona, see the sketchbook’s Introduction.