Joseph Mallord William Turner R.A.

Hugh Dobson;
by whom sold, London, Christie's, 9 April 1920, bt. Sampson;
Boyd Alexander, by descent in his family until sold, London, Sotheby's, 11 November 1982, lot 69;
sale, London, Sotheby's, 10 July 1997, lot 84; bt. by the present owner

A. Wilton, The Life and Works of J.M.W. Turner, London 1979, p. 339, no. 341

The watercolour pigments in this work have faded. At all four extreme edges of the sheet there is a line where the pigments have been protected by the mount. There is a small amount of surface dirt visible on the sheet. The watercolour has not been laid down. It is hinged at two point along the upper edge verso. For further information regarding this lot, please contact either Mark Griffith-Jones (mark.griffithjones@sothebys.com) or Emmeline Hallmark emmeline.hallmark@sothebys.com).
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Fonthill Abbey was built for William Beckford (1760-1844) by James Wyatt (1746-1813) between 1793 and 1813. Turner spent three weeks there during the summer of 1799, and painted several views of the Abbey, including the present drawing. Five watercolours of Fonthill were exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1800.¹ The present work records the tower under construction, before it was blown down in high winds in May 1800. After that disaster Beckford ordered the tower to be rebuilt. It was, however, only to collapse for second time during a storm of 1825. It has been suggested that the present work may be a sheet from the Fonthill sketch-book (Turner Bequest XLVII).

1. A. Wilton, The Life and Works of J.M.W. Turner, London 1979, p. 338-9, nos. 335-9