Joseph Mallord William Turner

Inverted relative to the sketchbook’s foliation, there are two views of Tamworth’s castle, church and bridge; the upper is from the south, with Ladybridge to the left and the church to the right of the castle, whereas the lower is from further west, with the bridge in the foreground and the pinnacles of the church tower to the left of the castle.

As Eric Shanes has noted,1 the upper sketch informed Turner’s England and Wales watercolour of Tamworth, discussed under folio 52 verso opposite (D22072; Turner Bequest CCXXXVIII 51c), the primary source, under which other views are noted.

Technical notes:

There a small splash or dab of dusky pink watercolour at the bottom left, perhaps a test stroke for the colour of the silhouetted castle in the England and Wales design.