The Battle of Manila. Fought May 1st by Rear Admiral Dewey. Spanish Loss: 11 Ships, 150 Killed, 250 Wounded. American Loss: None [caption title]

New York: Muller, Luchsinger & Co, 1898. Color chromolithograph, 16 x 20 inches, printed on thick, glossy paper. Corners a bit chipped, several short closed edge tears, minor surface wear. Image area still vibrant and clean. Very good overall. A striking and very rare lithograph capturing an important moment during the Spanish-American War, specifically the American Navy's assault on Manila Bay in the Philippines in 1898. In the present scene, three U.S. warships from the Asiatic Squadron in the left and middle, including Admiral Dewey's flagship the U.S.S. Olympia, fire their guns toward a few retreating ships flying the Spanish flag. A Spanish ship at middle right is almost completely sunken, with just a portion of the flag peaking above the water. The scene depicts the first major engagement of the Spanish-American War, a decisive victory for the American Navy that stands as one of the most lop-sided naval battles in history. During the course of the encounter, the Spanish Pacific Squadron was destroyed and effectively ended Spanish colonial rule in the Philippines. The bombardment was commanded by Rear Admiral George Dewey (1837-1917), whose head-and-shoulders portrait appears in the bottom left corner.

The work was accomplished by the New York firm of Muller, Luchsinger & Company, a prolific but still somewhat obscure producer of prints, lithographs, and chromolithographs in the latter-19th and early-20th centuries. OCLC records just two institutional copies, at the Library of Congress and the Clements Library. A dynamic and patriotic American naval scene picturing the United States Navy's obliteration of the Spanish Navy in Manila.