Joseph Mallord William Turner

The subject of this sketch is the ruined peristyle or inner court of the Casa di Pansa (House of Pansa), a large Pompeian residence which occupies an entire block in the west of the city, entered from the Via delle Terme. Turner’s viewpoint looks toward the north-west corner of the sixteen-columned portico surrounding a sunken pool. Some of the columns still have their Ionic capitals. For further sketches and a general discussion of Turner’s visit to Pompeii see the introduction to the sketchbook.