Hundreds of Turners rediscovered

"Rediscovered" may be a bit misleading, since many appear to have been lost track of, but not truly lost:

Hundreds of priceless "lost" Turner pictures have been discovered during a search to catalogue the works of one of Britain's most celebrated artists.

About 500 pieces were discovered when curators set about the task of documenting all of Turner's works for a dedicated website. They were traced to private owners during a 14-month detective trail overseen by curators at the Tate Gallery. . .

"They were often family heirlooms which the owners were unaware of because Turner did not always engrave his name," said spokeswoman for the project. . .

Website Turner Worldwide brings together 2,300 of his works along with the 30,000 pieces held at the Tate after being given to the nation on Turner's death. Works from more than 100 collections around the world - including about 50 UK galleries - are displayed on the site. They include previously unseen pieces from private collections in Dublin and Scotland.

A further 400 works which have lain untraced for several years are also being pursued.

From the BBC. Here's the link for the Turner Worldwide website.

Posted by David on June 11, 2003 2:06 PM