The Departure of the Fleet

The Departure of the Fleet
Artist	J. M. W. Turner
Year	1850
Type	Oil on canvas, history
Dimensions	120.3 cm× 89.9 cm(47.4 in× 35.4 in)
Location	Tate Britain, London

The Departure of the Fleet is an 1850 history painting by the British artist J.M.W. Turner. ^[1] Inspired by Classical writings, it depicts the fleet of the Trojan Aeneas departing from Carthage ^[2] The Carthaginian Queen Dido and her attendants are on the left, watching the departure of the ships.

It was one of four paintings that Turner exhibited at Royal Academy's Summer Exhibition of 1850. ^[3] Today it is in the collection of the Tate Britain, having been part of the Turner Bequest of 1856. ^[4]

See also

• List of paintings by J. M. W. Turner

References

1. Bailey p 583
2. Moorby p.257
3. Finley p 71
4. https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/turner-the-departure-of-the-fleet-n00554

Bibliography

• Bailey, Anthony. J.M.W. Turner: Standing in the Sun. Tate Enterprises Ltd, 2013.
• Beckett, R.B. John Constable and the Fishers: The Record of a Friendship. Taylor & Francis, 2023.
• Costello, Leo. J.M.W. Turner and the Subject of History. Taylor and Francis, 2017.
• Finley, Gerald. Angel in the Sun; Turner's Vision of History. McGill-Queen's University Press, 1999.
• Herrmann Luke. J. M. W. Turner. Oxford University Press, 2007
• Moorby, Nicola. Turner and Constable: Art, Life, Landscape. Yale University Press, 2025.
• Shanes, Eric. The Life and Masterworks of J.M.W. Turner. Parkstone International, 2012.
• Vance, Norman. The Victorians and Ancient Rome. John Wiley & Sons, 1997.