Staffa, Fingal's Cave 1831/1832

Fingal's Cave is a sea cave on the uninhabited island of Staffa, in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. How it became associated with the mythical hero is unclear, although it may have something to do with the Irish hero Fionn mac Cumhaill, a possible model for Fingal and supposed builder of the causeway between Ireland and Scotland. Turner's dramatic rendering with a steam-ship places it firmly in the modern world.

Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851), Staffa, Fingal's Cave, 90.8 x 121.3 cm, oil on canvas, 1831/1832; source: Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection, B1978.43.14, http://collections.britishart.yale.edu/vufind/Record/1669251, Public Domain.