REVIEW ~O~ The discovery of JMW Turner's oil on canvas exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1793 ~O~ REVIEW

Review (continued)

Evidence Arising From the Literary Study,
As to the 1793 exhibit being an oil, as to it being a 'Rising Squall' as to its whereabouts from 1793 to 1864

The St. Vincents Rock Oil:

• Passed to the Rev. Robert Nixon of Foots Cray, Kent after the 1793 exhibition; by sale or gift then by descent in 1837 to his son,
  . . . . . Dr. Rev. Francis Russell Nixon (Bishop of Tasmania), in whose possession it remained until 1864
  ...
• 1852: In Peter Cunningham's 'Memoir' the title is given as, 'Rising Squall over St. Vincent's Rocks at Bristol'
  ...
• 1864: At Christies sale of April 27 1864, seller 'Huskisson' presumably acting on behalf of Dr. Rev. Francis Russell Nixon, as 'St. Vincent's Rock, Avon, Bristol'
  . . . . . Ex 1793. It failed to sell and was bought in at 30 guineas.
  ...
• 1864: At Christies sale of July 9 1864, seller 'Hogarth' presumably acting for Dr. Rev. Francis Russell Nixon because it was sold together with another early
  . . . . . oil by Turner ('The Country Waggon - Snowdon - Early Morning') both being identified as Nixon's and as 'early works' in 'The Art Journal' September 1864.
  . . . . . The Art Journal gives the title as 'The Hotwells, Bristol - Storm coming on' but neither the sales catalogue nor The Art Journal mention that it is the exhibited work.
  . . . . . The buyer was 'Reynolds' at 114 guineas. (Reynolds bought both pictures for a total of 202 guineas. Provenance of 'The Country Waggon - Snowdon - Early Morning'
  . . . . . has been traced to 1920. However, the last confirmed 'sighting' of 'The Hotwells, Bristol - Storm coming on' is with Reynolds on 9th July 1864)
  ...
• 1874: Samuel Redgrave discovered that Turner's first exhibited oil was 'The Rising Squall' thus confirming transposition of titles in the 1793 catalogue because
  . . . . . an oil would not have been hung in the Library.
  ...
• 1879: Monkhouse refers to 'The Rising Squall, Hot Wells', exhibited 1793
  ...
• 1901 C.F.Bell misinterpreted the information provided by Samuel Redgrave. With the exception of Gilbert Redgrave later commentators
  . . . . . based their work on Bell's mistaken conclusion that 'The Rising Squall' was a watercolour.
  ...
• 1905: Gilbert Redgrave clearly states that both 'The Rising Squall' and 'Fishermen At Sea' were oils.
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