These lots are based on the engravings and etchings of Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775 - 1851), an English Romantic painter, printmaker, and watercolorist who was known for his imaginative landscapes and turbulent, often violent marine paintings. He signed many of his works "J. M. B. Turner" and was perhaps the greatest landscape artist of the 19th century. He studied at the Royal Academy of Arts, hence you often see "R.A." after his name, and his works were exhibited there when he was just fifteen. He had a love for seaside towns- you can see that in his pieces here - and he was a controversial figure who never married, but had two daughters, he became pessimistic and morose after the death of his father in 1829, and Turner lived in squalor and poor health towards the end of his life. The engravings and etchings come from a two-volume set of books by Turner called Picturesque Views of the Southern Coast of England, published in 1826, and we sold both volumes at auction earlier this year. See The Engraved Work of J. M. W. Turner by William George Rawlinson (1840 - 1928), a silk merchant who catalogued the prints of Joseph Turner. In 1878 he published Turner's Liber Studiorum: A Description and a Catalogue, and the two-volume set The Engraved Work of J. M. W. Turner came out in 1908 and 1913.The lots follow Rawlinson's numbering system: there are seven lots altogether - five have four works by Turner in each lot, one has five, and the last lot has three works by Turner, for a total of 28 pieces by the famous artist, and "R111" mean "Rawlinson's catalogue number 111", which was a view of Torbay from Brixham etched by William B. Cooke. Willam Bernard Cooke (1778 - 1855) was an English line engraver who worked with his brother and fellow-engraver George Cooke (1781 - 1834) to complete many of the drawings for Turner's Picturesque Views of the Southern Coast of England, and when you see "W. B. Cooke" on the etchings and engravings, that stands for William B. Turner's paintings go anywhere from $10 to $47,000,000, depending on the size and medium of the artwork, so choose wisely and you may get a bargain here. This first lot of Turner engravings and etchings consists of R111 (Torbay from Brixham), R92 (Lulworth Cove, Dorset), R94 (Lyme Regis), and R96 (Dartmouth, Devon). R111 is a coastal harbor scene that says "Drawn by J M B Turner R. A" in the lower left and was etched by W. B. Cooke, it is undated, but was etched in 1821, according to the Tate Gallery, and "HAM Jan 1920" is lightly penciled on the backside. The etching is very clean on the front, with faint brown spots in the bottom margin and faint brown spots on the backside. The outer margins measure 9 1/4 x 12 1/8 in. wide and the image measures 6 1/4 x 9 3/8 in. wide. R92 shows Lulworth Cove in Dorset and says "J M W Turner, R. A. ? 1811" in the lower left, it was engraved by W. B. Cooke in 1812 (see below the plate on the lower right), the left margin says "W G Rawlinson says 'The finest impression (of this date) on India paper. Throughout the series this is invariably the finest [ ]" and the bottom margin says "Line engraving [ ], Lulworth Cove Dorsetshire (R92) Engraver's Proof by W. B. Cooke after J M W Turner". The outer margins measure 9 3/8 x 12 1/4 in. wide and the image measures 8 1/2 x 5 3/4 in. wide. The outer edges are browned, with light brown spots in the margins, the image itself and the backside are clean, and there is just a tad of loss at the lower right corner of the outer margin. R94 depicts people fishing and sailing off Lyme Regis and says "J M W Turner R. A. ?" in the lower left, it was etched by W. B. Cooke in 1814, it says "R94 Etching" in the lower left corner, and the backside says "HC", which usually means "hors commerce, " or an artist's proof, and it reads "HAM Jan 1930 ? Southern Coast ? Etching" in pencil on the backside too. The outer margin measures 10 1/4 x 14 3/8 in. wide and the image measure 5 3/4 x 8 1/8 in. wide, there is light browning in the bottom margin and a brown spot on the top margin, the image itself is very clean, and the backside has occasional brown spots. R96 depicts a maritime harbor scene in Devon, it says "Drawn by J M W Turner R. A." below the plate on the lower left and "Etched by W B Cooke 1814" on the lower right; it reads "R96 Etching Engraver's Proof" in the margin on lower left and the letter "N" is stamped on the backside, along with "Brall ? 1929" in pencil on the backside. The outer margins measure 10 3/8 x 13 3/4 in. wide and the image measures 5 3/5 x 8 1/2 in. wide, with a clean plate and brown spots in the margins and faint brown spots on the backside. #5105 #5106 #5107 #5108