J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours

At the bottom left in relation to the principal subject, and at right-angles to it, is a rugged mountain view, likely drawn first. There are indications of buildings in the valley; Turner’s effectively illegible inscription below them is presumably a place name. Over half of the pages in this book comprise or include relatively slight sketches from his homeward route north through the valleys of the Alps via Trento, Bolzano (Bozen) and Innsbruck. As set out in the Introduction, although his overall itinerary is clear from many identified subjects, they were are not drawn in a single sequence, making the scenes between them difficult to place.

The main view, with the page turned horizontally, is south over Trento from an elevated position such as now afforded by the upper end of the Via di Pietrastretta. Towards the left is the cylindrical Torre d’Augusto of the Castello del Buonconsiglio; the Torre Vanga is to the right of centre, overlooking the old wooden bridge along the former course of the Adige (Etsch), where the Via Torre Vanga, Via Torre Verde and Via Francesco Petrarca now run towards the foreground, which is much built up by comparison with old maps.

The Church of Sant’Apollinare seems to be indicated at the right; the straightened course of the river now runs in from the right, immediately in front of it. There are hints of the features around the cathedral in the centre of the city beyond, with the mountains of the Adige Valley in the distance. Compare the more detailed prospect from a similar angle on folio 38 recto opposite (D31671), and a view from east of the castle on folio 40 verso (D31676). There is also a slighter variant on folio 78 recto (D31748). For other views of Trento in this sketchbook and its place in Turner’s itinerary, see under the recto (D31669).