In Tate Britain
Prints and Drawings Room
View by appointment- Artist
- Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
- Medium
- Graphite and watercolour on paper
- Dimensions
- Support: 232 × 310 mm
- Collection
- Tate
- Acquisition
- Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
- Reference
- D27714
Turner Bequest CCLXXX 197
Display caption
The most substantial piece in Samuel Rogers's volume Poems was the 'Voyage of Columbus', a celebratory narrative describing Columbus's arrival in America. In this vignette, Turner's sky serves a symbolic function; its 'baleful light' has been invaded by the marching ranks of armed spirits, the ghostly warriors of Atlantis. For these details, Turner followed Rogers's poem quite closely, but this does not detract from the power of his own invention. The development of this image can be traced from a rough pencil sketch on the back of the finished vignette, which sets out the basic composition, including the fantastic sky. The lower study is one of two colour drafts for this subject.
Gallery label, September 2004
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