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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1819-29 Italy and after > First Italian Tour 1819-20 > Tivoli Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner The So-Called Temple of Vesta, Tivoli 1819

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Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘The So-Called Temple of Vesta, Tivoli’ 1819
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 46 Recto:
The So-Called Temple of Vesta, Tivoli 1819
D15516
Turner Bequest CLXXXIII 46
Pencil and grey watercolour wash on white wove paper, 253 x 200 mm
Inscribed by ?John Ruskin in faded red ink ‘46’ bottom left, inverted, and by an unknown hand in pencil ‘46’ bottom left, inverted
Stamped in black ‘CLXXXIII 46’ top left, inverted
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
The so-called Temple of Vesta is an ancient circular edifice dating from the first century BC which stands on the brink of the gorge at the northern edge of Tivoli. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries it represented an important site for the study of classical architecture and was one of the most popular motifs for artists visiting Italy. This sketch depicts a view from just beneath the ruin looking south across its façade. For a detailed description of the temple and other related studies see folio 44 verso (D15513).
Visible in the background to the left of the Temple of Vesta is the Church of Santa Maria del Ponte and the Ponte San Rocco, a bridge above the former falling point of the ‘Grand Cascade’ of the Aniene, compare folio 27 (D15494). The church was demolished during the works to divert the river away from the residential district after a devastating flood in 1826. Similar sketches can be seen on folios 45 and 46a (D15514 and D15517). Like many drawings within this sketchbook, the composition has been executed over a washed grey background and Turner has created highlights by rubbing or lifting out the wash to reveal the white paper beneath.

Nicola Moorby
February 2010

How to cite

Nicola Moorby, ‘The So-Called Temple of Vesta, Tivoli 1819 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, February 2010, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, December 2012, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-the-so-called-temple-of-vesta-tivoli-r1137792, accessed 23 September 2024.