Question 1

Special rooms for Turner's collection were not built immediately after his death because there were so many works in the collection that special rooms would be very expensive to build.

Turner's extensive collection included 300 oil paintings, 19,000 drawings, and various other items, implying that creating appropriate accommodations for such a large and diverse collection would require significant financial resources and planning.

A) Turner was not a respected painter when he died

This option is incorrect because the passage states that Turner was a successful painter during his lifetime and that his reputation grew even greater after his death. Therefore, his level of respect as an artist would not have hindered the building of special rooms for his collection.

B) Turner's heirs wanted to retain ownership of the paintings

This option is not supported by the passage. The text does not mention any conflicts regarding ownership or that Turner's heirs sought to retain his works. Instead, it highlights Turner's intention to bequeath the collection to Great Britain.

C) there were so many works in the collection that special rooms would be very expensive to build

This option is correct as it aligns directly with the context provided. The passage indicates that the sheer volume of Turner's works, including a vast number of drawings and other items, would necessitate the construction of special rooms, which would be costly and not feasible until funding was secured.

D) private donors were reluctant to contribute funds for such an unusual purpose

While the passage mentions a private donor contributed funds in the 1980s, it does not suggest that reluctance from private donors was a reason for the delay in building the special rooms. The focus is more on the scale of the collection rather than donor sentiment.

E) many of the works had to be retrieved from private collections and museums around the world

This option is not mentioned in the passage. There is no indication that the delay was due to the need to retrieve works from other locations. The primary reason for the postponement of the special rooms is the extensive size of the collection itself.

Conclusion

The correct answer, C, highlights the practical challenges posed by the vast number of works in Turner's collection, which made immediate construction of special rooms unfeasible. Other options fail to address the central issue of cost and space requirements, focusing instead on factors that are either unsupported by the text or irrelevant to the reasons for the delay.