Keeping the nautical link, Temeraire Street was called Nelson Street until 1892.
It seems that Turner’s painting of the ship’s final journey takes some artistic liberties and did not accurately depict the actual events. According to historical records, the ship was taken for scrap at Beatson’s ship-breaking yard in Rotherhithe by two tugboats, not one, on 6 September 1836.
Contemporary observers mentioned that there was no sunset during the ship’s final journey. However, in Turner’s painting, the sun appears to set in the east, which does not match reality.
Furthermore, the ship’s appearance in the painting differs from its actual state at the time. By the time the ship was auctioned off to ship-breaker John Beatson, many of its features, such as the tall masts and rigging, had been removed. Turner’s painting depicts the ship with the rigging and masts still intact.
These artistic choices by Turner may have been made to create a more dramatic and visually appealing representation of the ship’s final moments rather than accurately reflecting the historical details.
