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

As Turner continued his two-day boat journey from Lyon to Avignon, he passed the village of Arras-sur-Rhône on the right bank of the river. Across the river lies Serves-sur-Rhône, the subject of folios 12 verso and 13 recto (D21013–D21014). As identified by the geographer and Turner researcher Roland Courtot, this page combines two variant views of the ruined medieval castle at Arras-sur-Rhône.1 Its cylindrical keep, referred to variously as the ‘white tower’ or ‘Soubise’ tower, once stood alongside the so-called ‘brown tower’, which has not survived. The upper view is a more distant and schematic outline of the tower, in contrast with the more detailed rendering below.

Citing the present work, Cecilia Powell has commented on Turner’s fondness for castles. See under folio 3 verso (D20995) for a summary of her analysis.