A Group of Partly Draped Female Figures, Possibly the Fates from ‘The Golden Bough’
- Artist: Joseph Mallord William Turner
- Date: ?1834
- Medium: Oil on board
- Dimensions: support: 85 x 147 mm
- Museum: Tate Britain
- Collection record: Tate Britain website
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About this artwork
This is “A Group of Partly Draped Female Figures, Possibly the Fates from The Golden Bough” by Joseph Mallord William Turner. Painted in 1834, the work is an intimate oil on board that measures just 85 × 147 mm—so small you can almost hold the myth in your hand. Turner, better known for sweeping seascapes, turns here to the world of allegory. The canvas shows a handful of women, their bodies partly covered, caught in a moment of repose. Their drapery hints at the Fates, those ancient sisters who spin and cut the thread of destiny, linking the painting to James Joyce’s later reference in *The Golden Bough*. The brushwork is loose and expressive, a precursor to the painter’s later atmospheric style, yet here it stays focused on the human form. Though modest in size, the piece is part of the Turner Bequest that entered the national collection in 1856, and it’s on display in Gallery 102, offering a quiet counterpoint to Turner’s larger, more dramatic canvases.
See it in person
A Group of Partly Draped Female Figures, Possibly the Fates from ‘The Golden Bough’ is in the collection of Tate Britain on Millbank, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
