Joseph Mallord William Turner

Hill gives a full description of the subject and viewpoint, on the Middlesex bank of the Thames near the entrance to the Grand Union Canal and the mouth of the River Brent. James Wyatt’s new Kew Palace, with its castellated roof, is clearly seen; Hill notes that the building on the left, part of which was a former windmill, was in use as a basket factory. Also noticed by Hill is the similarity of viewpoint to a watercolour formerly known as Eton College, from the Thames 1 but now identified as depicting Kew Palace (Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester).2 A sketch of a similar view, with less detail and cut off somewhat on the right, is on folio 13 of the sketchbook (D05508). Compare also the contemporary watercolour in the Hesperides (1) sketchbook (Tate D05833; Turner Bequest XCIII 38a).