Joseph Mallord William Turner

Although the ruins are largely masked by creeper, they seem to be those of the Cellarium of Waverley Abbey, near Farnham, Surrey, seen from the banks of the River Wey (looking north). A watercolour of the same ruin seen from the north is erroneously titled Glastonbury Abbey (private collection).1 The early twelfth-century Cistercian foundation at Waverley was the first house of its order in England. The structure, of Bargate ironstone and white limestone, is part of a large site on which most of the principal buildings including the Church have been completely destroyed. It is now managed by English Heritage.

Verso:

Blank; stamped in brown ink with Turner Bequest monogram.