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

This page contains four studies of Tuscan towns and landscapes near Siena, executed with the sketchbook turned upright and inverted. Dominating the upper half of the page is a study of a fortified hilltop town, possibly the medieval walled town of Monteriggioni, located north-west of Siena. Cypress trees appear to the left and a road curves into the foreground. This study appears to extend onto folio 5 verso opposite (D21597). One of the inscriptions may refer to the ‘Olive’ groves in the foreground. Beneath is a partially scribbled-out and overwritten reference to the Villa Barberino, according to Finberg’s 1909 Inventory of the Bequest.1

Towards the bottom are two slight views labelled ‘1’ and ‘2’, which presumably connect to form one extended vista. The upper view extends further onto the opposite page. Turner’s inscription ‘Monte Senese’ identifies the topography as the Montagnola Senese area of hills and villages, which he glimpsed as he looked west during the approach to Siena.

At the bottom of the page is a view of a town, inverted relative to the sketchbook’s foliation. The building in the bottom-left corner bears a certain resemblance to the cathedral in Orvieto.