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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner

Joseph Mallord William Turner The Domtoren, Utrecht 1817

Image 1 of 2
Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘The Domtoren, Utrecht’ 1817
Folio 63 Recto:
The Domtoren, Utrecht 1817
D13119
Turner Bequest CLXII 65
Pencil on ‘blue’ laid writing paper, 93 x 156 mm
Stamped in black ‘CLXII – 65’ top left, descending vertically
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
Turner reached Utrecht from Amsterdam on September 8 and continued to Rotterdam the next day, as noted in the Itinerary Rhine Tour pocketbook (Tate D12696; Turner Bequest CLIX 100). For Utrecht in this sketchbook see folio 22 verso (D13038).
With the page turned horizontally, this quick sketch focuses on the tower (Domtoren) of the Gothic Domkerk (St Martin’s Cathedral), seen through trees. The nave was destroyed in 1647, leaving a large gap between the tower and the rest of the building.
Turner revisited Utrecht in 1825 and drew it in his Holland sketchbook (Tate D19093‒D19097; Turner Bequest CCXIV 128a‒130a).
Technical Note:
There is a small tear in the centre of this leaf.

Quirine van der Meer Mohr
December 2013

Revised by David Blayney Brown
September 2025

How to cite

Quirine van der Meer Mohr, ‘The Domtoren, Utrecht 1817’, catalogue entry, December 2013, revised by David Blayney Brown, September 2025, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, June 2026, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/the-domtoren-utrecht-r1212490, accessed 31 July 2026.