Overview

• The Rising Squall, Hot Wells, from St Vincent’s Rock, Bristol dates from 1792 and was Turner’s first oil painting exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1793.
• The work was misattributed to a Julius Caesar Ibbetson follower and sold last year for only a few hundred pounds under heavy varnish.
• A recent cleaning revealed Turner’s hidden signature, leading leading scholars to unanimously confirm its authenticity.
• Sotheby’s will display the painting in London this month before auctioning it on July 2 with an estimate of £200,000–£300,000.
• Tate Britain has requested the canvas for its forthcoming exhibition on JMW Turner and John Constable, highlighting its significance to understanding Turner’s early technique.