Turner first visited Heidelberg in 1833 on his way through Germany to Venice. He was impressed by the spectacular setting of the ancient university town on the River Neckar, a tributary of the Rhine, and made more than 50 sketches there. Turner became increasingly interested in Heidelberg in the mid-1840s, using the subject to explore ever more dazzling light effects. Here the hillside and the buildings of the Old Town seem to melt away in the setting sun and the figures working in the foreground dissolve into their surroundings.