This list names historical, biblical and classical subjects used or presumably intended for the
Liber Studiorum and inspired by pictures by Nicolas Poussin or perhaps also Richard Wilson. Four subjects were engraved for the
Liber while others were painted. Only one,
Pyramus and Thisbe, is otherwise unknown.
The Fifth Plague of Egypt (Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indiana)
1 was exhibited in 1800 and later engraved for the
Liber; for the drawing see Tate
D08120; Turner Bequest CXVI S.
The Tenth Plague of Egypt (Tate
N00470)
2 was exhibited in 1802 and later engraved for the
Liber; for the drawing see Tate
D08162; Turner Bequest CXVIII H.
The Deluge (Tate
N00493)
3 may have been exhibited in 1805 and was engraved for but not published in the
Liber; for the drawing see Tate
D08178; Turner Bequest CXVIII X.
Narcissus and Echo (Tate
T03869; displayed at Petworth House)
4 was exhibited in 1804 and reproduced in a soft-ground etching by Turner himself, presumably with the
Liber in mind.
Dido and Aeneas (Tate
N00494)
5 was not exhibited until 1814 but is seen in the planning in the earlier
Studies for Pictures: Isleworth and
Hesperides 1 sketchbooks (Tate
D05520; Turner Bequest XC 21;
D05773–D05778; Turner Bequest XCIII 4a, 5, 5a–7).
The Parting of Hero and Leander – from the Greek of Musaeus (National Gallery, London)
6 was only exhibited in 1837 but had an even longer gestation, reaching back to the
Calais Pier sketchbook (Tate
D04959; Turner Bequest LXXXI 57). Neither of these last subjects was used for the
Liber.
