Joseph Mallord William Turner

The drawing was made with the page turned horizontally. As identified by Cecilia Powell,1 it shows the ruins of the Schönburg castle, since restored, high above the Gothic spire of the Liebfrauenkirche in Oberwesel on the west bank of the Rhine, looking downriver to the north-west. There is a related view on folio 54 recto opposite (D30562; Turner Bequest CCCIII 53).

Powell has noted that Turner neared the end of this tour following ‘the familiar route of the Rhine between Mainz and Cologne. He almost certainly travelled by steamer, ... sketching most of the well-known sights perfunctorily as he passed.’2 Given that this sketchbook was used in reverse of its subsequent foliation, she has specified the overall range of this phase as ‘TB CCCIII 68v–20v; 11r’,3 indicating folios 12 recto and 21 verso–69 verso (D30479, D30497–D30592; Turner Bequest CCCIII 20a–68a); see this book’s Introduction for the full itinerary of this part of the journey.

For other Oberwesel and Schönburg views in this sketchbook and elsewhere, see under folio 52 recto (D30558; CCCIII 51).