Etching and engraving printed in dark brown, 1807. 184x260 mm; 7 1/4x10 1/4 inches, full margins. Second state (of 5). From Liber Studiorum. A superb, richly-inked, early impression.
History, literature and myth were profound sources of inspiration for Turner. This particular composition derives from Apollonius Rhodius's epic Greek poem, Argonautica, written in the 3rd century BCE. The tale chronicles mythical Greek hero Jason and his voyage to retrieve the legendary Golden Fleece. In Turner's depiction, Jason scales a fallen tree to approach the dragon guarding the Fleece. Argonautica profoundly influenced Latin poets like Catullus and Ovid, and it served as a framework for Virgil's Roman national epic, the Aeneid. Finberg 6.
