Figures and Buildings at Dieppe from Rivers Meuse and Moselle Sketchbook

In September 1824, Turner worked in this pocket-sized sketchbook at Dieppe, a port he had first visited three years earlier. Over the course of his two-day stay in the city, Turner covered numerous pages with sketches that included panoramic views and quick drawings of street life. On one side, is a study of the facade of the Hôtel d’Anvers, identifiable in the final oil painting and still standing today in Dieppe on the quayside. The other page, shown here, is crammed with studies of figures and architectural details, surrounded by almost illegible annotations in English and French. A few of Turner’s notes record the colors of the outfits worn by the figures.