(Plan, Bohemia 1821–1881 Hallstatt)
Naval Battle of Lissa, signed J. C. B. Püttner, oil on canvas, 80 x 119 cm, framed, (Rei)

Naval Battle of Lissa:
In 1866 Austria found itself facing war on two fronts: Prussia in the north and Italy in the south. The Imperial war fleet under Wilhelm Tegetthoff was charged with guarding the Venetian coastline. The Italian fleet in the Adriatic was under the command of Admiral Carlo Conte di Pesano who had been ordered to take the island of Lissa (today’s Vis) in order to dominate the Austrian coastline. The Italian fleet was superior to its Austrian rival in every way; numerically, technically, and in terms of speed and equipment. On 17 June 1866 the fleets engaged and Tegetthoff made a daring attack. Intensive manoeuvres had left the Austrian navy well trained, and to protect his ships as well as possible from Italian fire, Tegetthoff approached in arrow formation. Using an ingenious ramming technique, Tegetthoff capsized the Italian ships, allowing the Austrian fleet to notch up an important victory. Tegetthoff was promoted to Vice Admiral and in Vienna a monument was erected to commemorate the victory at Lissa. The former owner of this painting, Freiherr von Spaun, was also present during this battle and, after retiring, became the only living admiral after whom a ship of the Imperial Fleet was named. (Source: www.bda.at, www.austrian-mint.at)