Joseph Mallord William Turner

Looking beyond the bridge over the Alzette River and the the French military engineer Vauban’s towers (visible in the foreground), Turner’s rough sketch of Luxembourg depicts the Grünewald at left, the Bock and the city at right with its manifold buildings, churches and fortifications. This sketch and others (Tate D28281, D28283–D28287; Turner Bequest CCLXXXVIII 64, 65–67) formed the basis of a gouache and watercolour drawing taken on blue paper in around 1839.1

For other sketches of Luxembourg in this book see Tate D28228–D28231, D28266–D28280; Turner Bequest CCLXXXVIII 32a–34, 56a–63a. See also the earlier Rivers Meuse and Moselle sketchbook of 1824 (Tate D19712, D19714; Turner Bequest CCXVI 82, 83).