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The Ferry Beach and Inn at Saltash, Cornwall, 1811
Joseph Mallord William Turner (British, 1775–1851)
Oil on canvas; 35 3/8 x 47 1/2 in. (89.9 x 120.7 cm)
Marquand Collection, Gift of Henry G. Marquand, 1889 (89.15.9)

In a letter of 1852, the art critic and Turner enthusiast John Ruskin described this painting as "what the mind sees when it looks for poetry in humble actual life." This genre scene depicts the workaday activities of sailors, soldiers, fishermen, and women in this twelfth-century market town. The simple word BEER has been painted on the wall of the building in the middle ground. The solemn motto that appears on the building at the right echoes Lord Nelson's signal to his fleet before the Battle of Trafalgar: SALTASH ENGLAND EXPECTS EVERY MAN TO DO HIS DUTY.

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    • The Ferry Beach and Inn at Saltash, Cornwall, 1811
    Joseph Mallord William Turner (British, 1775–1851)
    Oil on canvas; 35 3/8 x 47 1/2 in. (89.9 x 120.7 cm)
    Marquand Collection, Gift of Henry G. Marquand, 1889 (89.15.9)