- Description
-
- Creator(s)
- Thomas Girtin (1775-1802)
- Title
-
- Mickleham Church
- Date
- 1795 - 1796
- Medium and Support
- Graphite and watercolour on wove paper
- Dimensions
- 18.8 × 24.7 cm, 7 ⅜ × 10 in
- Inscription
'Girtin' lower left, on the back
- Subject Terms
- Surrey View; Gothic Architecture: Parish Church
-
- Collection
- Versions
-
Mickleham Church
(TG0860)
- Catalogue Number
- TG0351
- Girtin & Loshak Number
- 124ii as 'Unfinished'; 'c. 1800'
- Description Source(s)
- Viewed in 2001 and 2018
Provenance
Dr Thomas Monro (1759–1833); his posthumous sale, Christie's, 26–28 June and 1–2 July 1833 (day and lot number not known); Archdeacon Charles Parr Burney (1785–1864); then by descent to Rosetta d’Arblay Wood (née Burney) (1814–1910); then by descent to Edith Mary Burke Powell (Lady Powell, née Wood) (1848–1934); Sir Bruce Stirling Ingram (1877–1963); bought by the Museum, 1963
Exhibition History
Colnaghi’s, 1956, no.57; Oxford, 1963, no.34
Bibliography
Brown, 1982, p.333, no.726 as 'c.1800'
Place depicted
Other entries in Monro School Copies:
British Views, Including Works after the Outlines of John Henderson

An Upland Landscape with a Rainbow, Said to Be Lowther Fells
Kendal Town Hall

Tonbridge Bridge and Castle
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

The High Rocks, near Tunbridge Wells
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

The Town of Rye, Seen from the Marshes
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

Dover Castle, Seen from the Beach
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

An Upland Scene with a Wooded Valley
Leeds University Art Gallery

Unidentified Medieval Ruins, with Agricultural Buildings
Tate, London

A View near Keswick, Probably Bassenthwaite Lake
Private Collection

Skiddaw and Bassenthwaite Lake, from the Vale of Newlands
Private Collection

Looking South into Borrowdale, from the Shore of Derwentwater
Private Collection

Mountainous Landscape, Possibly in the Lake District
Walker Art Gallery, National Museums Liverpool

Boon Crag Cottage, with Coniston Water Beyond
Private Collection

A View in Cumbria, Probably Looking from Irton Fell towards Ravenglass
Clark Art Institute, Williamstown

A View in Cumbria, Looking towards Irton and the Irish Sea, with the Isle of Man in the Distance
Tate, London

The River Leven, Cumbria, Viewed from Penny Bridge
Tate, London

St John's Vale, Cumbria
Private Collection

The Lodore Falls
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

Langdale Pikes
Private Collection

An Unidentified Bridge over a Stream, Possibly in North Wales
Private Collection

Derwentwater, with Skiddaw in the Distance
Eton College, Windsor

Beddgelert Bridge, North Wales
Private Collection

A Mountainous Landscape with an Overshot Mill
Clark Art Institute, Williamstown

A Mountainous River Landscape with a Bridge
Private Collection

Cynwyd Mill, near Corwen, North Wales
Brandler Galleries, Brentwood

Conwy: The Town Walls from the South East
Tate, London

Raglan Castle: The Great Hall
Private Collection

A Mountainous Landscape with an Unidentified Bridge, Possibly in North Wales
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

The Iron Bridge at Coalbrookdale
Private Collection

An Estuary, Possibly Dartmouth
Private Collection

Grasmere: Looking North West to Helm Crag
Private Collection

The Head of Lake Windermere
Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence

The Head of Derwentwater, with the Lodore Falls
Private Collection

Dover Harbour, with Shipping Being Overhauled
Tate, London

A Two-Master in Dover Harbour, with the Castle Beyond
Tate, London

Dover Harbour: A Ship Being Overhauled
Tate, London

A Boat on the Shore, near Shakespeare Cliff, Dover
Tate, London

Dover Harbour: Fishing Vessels, Their Sails Drying
Tate, London

Shipping in Dover Harbour, with the Castle Beyond
Tate, London

A Lake View, Possibly Ullswater
Private Collection

A General View of Dover Harbour, from the East
Tate, London

Dover Harbour: Small Boats by the Quay
Tate, London

Boats in Dover Harbour
British Museum, London

A Ship under Repair in Dover Harbour
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

Figures on a Fishing Vessel in Dover Harbour
Private Collection

A Fishing Vessel with Hastings Beyond
Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery

Dover Castle from the Sea
Private Collection

A Beached Vessel in the Inner Harbour at Dover
Private Collection

Dover Harbour, with the Castle on the Hill
British Museum, London

Dover Harbour
Private Collection

Beached Vessels in Dover Harbour, the Castle in the Distance
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton

Vessels Anchored in Dover Harbour, with the Castle Beyond
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

Warehouses with Shipping in Dover Harbour
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton

Vessels in the Harbour at Dover, with the Castle Beyond
Private Collection

Dover Harbour, with the Cliffs Beyond
Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart

Vessels Moored in Dover Harbour
Private Collection

The Inner Harbour, Dover, with the Castle Beyond
Brighton Museum and Art Gallery

A Ship Drawn Up on a Beach Being Careened
Private Collection

Beached Fishing Vessels, Dover Harbour
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

Beached Fishing Vessels in the Harbour at Dover
Private Collection

Boats Anchored in Dover Harbour
Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Boats Anchored in Dover Harbour
Private Collection

Dover Harbour, with Fishing Boats at Low Tide
The High Museum of Art, Atlanta

Dover: The Harbour with Vessels
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge

A Smack in Dover Harbour, Drying Sails, with the Old Church in the Distance
National Maritime Museum, Greenwich

Dover Harbour: A Boat under Repair
Private Collection

Fishing Boats at Low Tide, near Dover
Courtauld Gallery, London

Dover: Two Boatmen Standing by the Prow of a Brig
Private Collection

Dover Harbour
Private Collection

A Fisherman's Cottage, Said to Be at Dover
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven

The Hull of a Ship under Repair, with a Barge and Smaller Boats
Tate, London

A Boat-Builder’s Yard, Possibly on the River Medway
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge

A Boat-Builder’s Yard, Possibly on the Medway
Private Collection

A Boat-Builder’s Yard, Possibly on the River Medway
Private Collection

A Boat-Builder's Shed, Possibly on the River Medway
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

A Boat-Builder’s Shed, Possibly on the River Medway, with a Fishing Boat with Drying Sails
Tate, London

The Coast, near Dover
The Higgins, Bedford

Folkestone Harbour
Julian Huxley-Parlour Fine Art, London

Beachy Head, Looking towards Newhaven
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

Beachy Head, Looking towards Newhaven
Ulster Museum, Belfast

Shakespeare Cliff, Dover
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

Beached Vessels in Dover Harbour, the Castle in the Distance
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

Buildings on a Wooden Quayside
Private Collection

A Coast View with Chalk Cliffs, Probably from near Beachy Head
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

A Small Boat under Repair by a Jetty
Private Collection

Dover: Snargate Street, Looking West
Private Collection

Dartford High Street
Private Collection

Tonbridge Bridge and Castle
Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge

Rye, from the River Tillingham
National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

Dover: Fishing Boats at Low Tide
Private Collection

Two Boatmen Caulking the Bows of a Beached Brig, Probably at Dover
Private Collection

Hastings: A Beached Fishing Boat
Private Collection

A Coastal Scene at Dover
Worthing Museum and Art Gallery

Mickleham Church
Tate, London

Dolbadarn Castle on Llyn Padarn
Clark Art Institute, Williamstown

Conwy Castle, from the East
Huddersfield Art Gallery

Harlech Castle, from the South
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

The Gatehouse, Harlech Castle, Seen from the Moat
Private Collection, Gloucestershire

The High Street at Egham
Private Collection

Boats in Dover Harbour
Leeds Art Gallery

Two Trees Overlooking a Meandering River
Private Collection

A Dilapidated Cottage
Private Collection

Dover: Boats Anchored in the Harbour
Private Collection

A Coastal View near Dover, probably at St Margaret's, Cliffe
Private Collection

Dover: Beached Boats, with the Castle Beyond
Private Collection

Dover Harbour: The Stern of a Large Ship, and Smaller Vessels
Tate, London

The Town of Rye, Seen from the Marshes
British Museum, London
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About this Work
This view of the church of St Michael and All Angels in Mickleham in Surrey is one of two watercolours showing the building from the north east (the other being TG0860). The other, which is slightly larger, was bought at the posthumous sale of Dr Thomas Monro (1759–1833) by Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851), who produced it in around 1795–96 in collaboration with Girtin, who, as far as one can be certain in such cases, provided the pencil outline for his colleague to add simple washes of blues and greys. In contrast, this watercolour is almost certainly the sole work of Girtin and was catalogued as such by Thomas Girtin (1874–1960) and David Loshak, who dated it to 1800, suggesting that it was ‘unfinished’ (Girtin and Loshak, 1954, p.151). Initially, I thought something similar, and I associated the work with a group of Surrey subjects that appear to have been sketched on a visit to Monro’s country retreat at nearby Fetcham, including two other churches from the same locality – at Effingham (TG0345) and Capel (TG0857). However, it increasingly looks likely that both of the views of Mickleham church were, like the vast majority of the works produced by Girtin and Turner for Monro, copied from another source (see comparative image TG0860). The aquatint depicting the church at Mickleham certainly differs in a number of respects from the two watercolours, but I suspect that this stems from the fact that the model from which the print was made was worked up by Joseph Charles Barrow (c.1759–1804) from an untraced sketch by the amateur artist and antiquarian James Moore (1762–99), who provided the bases for many of Girtin’s early topographical views. These include at least a dozen of the views that Girtin produced for Monro, amongst which is Kidwelly Church (see TG0264 figure 1), which was also engraved for Picturesque Views of Churches (Barrow, 1791–93). If the source of Mickleham Church were in the work of an amateur, it would help to explain the poor perspective seen in both versions of the composition.
If this is correct, and this work is not the outcome of Girtin’s visit to the Surrey countryside, then we need to adjust the status of the drawing as well as the date proposed by Girtin and Loshak. I suspect the key here is Girtin’s practice of sometimes making replicas of the drawings he copied at Monro’s home, presumably so as to keep a version for his own use whilst the first outline was handed over to Turner to colour. One example of this practice is found in the collection of the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, Beached Vessels in Dover Harbour (TG0838 and TG0812), whilst Dartford High Street (TG0843 and TG0844) is another. In this case, however, Girtin himself went on to add a series of colour washes, which, as with Dover Castle, Seen from the Beach (TG0263), effectively turn a pencil outline into a colour sketch. Precisely when Girtin added the colour is impossible to say, but I suspect that it was before the 1800 date suggested by Girtin and Loshak, and that we are probably looking at two different dates for this work, say 1795 and 1798, with the latter marking the decision to convert a simple outline into a more saleable commodity.
1794 - 1797
Mickleham Church
TG0860
1797 - 1798
Effingham Church
TG0345
1797 - 1798
Capel Church
TG0857
1794 - 1797
Mickleham Church
TG0860
1795 - 1796
Beached Vessels in Dover Harbour, the Castle in the Distance
TG0838
1795 - 1796
Beached Vessels in Dover Harbour, the Castle in the Distance
TG0812
1795 - 1796
Dartford High Street
TG0843
1795 - 1796
Dartford High Street
TG0844
1795 - 1796
Dover Castle, Seen from the Beach
TG0263