An old watercolour painting originally bought for £100 is set to sell for £30,000 at auction – after it turned out to be by the artist Joseph Mallord William Turner.
The picture – of Bishop Vaughan’s chapel at St Davids Cathedral in Pembrokeshire, Wales – was purchased during a clear-out of pictures from a Georgian mansion in Suffolk in the early 1990s.
It was bought for just £100 and remained largely unnoticed on its new owner’s wall for the next 30 years.
But after the buyer, who wishes to remain anonymous, discovered a hidden inscription of ‘W Turner’ on the back of the painting, experts managed to confirm its artistry.
It is now expected to sell for between £20,000 to £30,000 when it is auctioned with Cheffins in Cambridge on March 20.
An old watercolour painting originally bought for £100 is set to sell for £30,000 at auction – after it turned out to be by the artist Joseph Mallord William Turner
The owner said: ‘The painting was hanging in our dining room for over 30 years – we periodically discussed that the picture could be by Turner but did not take it any further.
‘After a trip to Wales in the autumn of 2022 visiting St Davids Cathedral, our interest in our picture was rekindled. As we were aware of the recent sale of a Turner at Cheffins, we decided to contact them.’
Born in 1775, Turner was an English romantic painter renowned for his paintings of the country’s landscapes
Patricia Cross at Cheffins said: ‘This piece is a significant new discovery which provides a glimpse into Turner’s early development as an artist.’
Born in 1775, Turner was an English romantic painter renowned for his paintings of the country’s landscapes and architecture.
Turner toured Wales in 1795 aged 20, and is known to have visited St Davids – which is when he is believed to have worked on the painting.
The talented artist began exhibiting his work at the Royal Academy when he was just 15 and left behind more than 550 oil paintings, 2,000 watercolours and 30,000 works on paper – many of which he gifted to the nation.
Some of his famous works include ‘Frosty Morning’, ‘Rain, Steam and Speed’ and depictions of Venice and the Battle of Trafalgar.
The owner became intrigued as to the painting’s origins when they noticed the telling inscription on the back.
The picture – of Bishop Vaughan’s chapel at St Davids Cathedral in Pembrokeshire, Wales (pictured) – was purchased during a clear-out of pictures from a Georgian mansion in Suffolk in the early 1990s
They then found a similar work by Turner online in the South Wales Sketchbook, although this was less developed and paid a visit to St David’s Cathedral.
However, it remained difficult to decipher as the chapel had undergone repair work since Turner visited – and seemed to have taken licence with the perspective.
After taking the painting to auctioneer Cheffins in Cambridge, Turner expert Andrew Wilton was called in.
Wilton is the former director for the Turner Collection at Tate Britain and confirmed that the painting was indeed a Turner.
Its whereabouts for the 200 years prior to the clearance sale are unknown.
Some paintings by Turner, such as his depiction of Caenarvon Castle in 1798 have sold for nearly £500,000.
JMW Turner’s ‘The Fighting Temeraire’ (1839) and ‘The Steamer and Lightship’ at Tate Britain
It is not the first time a seemingly worthless painting has been discovered to be worth a secret fortune.
Last year, an Antiques Roadshow guest was left shocked after it turned out a painting owned by his family for 65 years was a signed David Hockney original.
Art expert Rupert Maas confirmed the painting was by the British artist and called it an ‘extraordinary story’ on the show filmed at Belmont House, near Faversham in Kent.
The painting was also found to be actually worth between £20,000 to £30,000.
Who was JMW Turner?
JMW Turner is regarded as one of the finest landscape painters of his generation
Joseph Mallord William Turner was born in Covent Garden, London in 1775 and studied at the Royal Academy.
He was renowned for touring during the summer creating sketches which he would develop in his studio over the winter months.
His work soon attracted considerable attention and was regarded as one of the best painters of his generation.
By 1800, he was able to afford his own central London gallery where he displayed watercolours completed from the sketches during his earlier tours.
He was renowned for his English landscapes although in 1817 he visited Holland and Belgium to wander the site of the Battle of Waterloo, which resulted in his 1818 masterpiece The Field of Waterloo.
He also travelled widely in France and Italy to find inspiration for new artworks.
His painting the Fighting Temeraire – was inspired by a chance sighting of the vessel as it was being towed up the River Thames in 1839 by a steam tug where it was to be scrapped.
The HMS Temeraire was part of Nelson’s fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.
He died in 1851.
Source: Tate
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