Mali Lošinj in the 19th century - a view towards the future

The nineteenth century represents the most intensive period in the development of Mali Lošinj, marked by the impetus of shipping and the strong development of shipbuilding, and at the end of the century, by tourism. In that period, Mali Lošinj was "catching up" with larger and more important centres in the near and far surroundings, but at the same time visionary development directions were foreseen and the foundations were laid for the future development of Mali Lošinj.

The layout is divided into 4 units, each from a different aspect, explaining in more detail the development features of Mali Lošinj. In the first part, entitled “Mali Lošinj through the eyes of foreigners”, two descriptions of Mali Lošinj have been exposed, from 1771 and 1842, i.e. from the time immediately before the great impetus of shipping and shipbuilding. Looking "from the outside", from the perspective of two foreigners, it is clear that the characteristics that Mali Lošinj had in the second half of the 19th century were the result of long-term processes that had their roots in earlier periods. The second topic, “The birth of a community”, represents a summary of the origin of the first charitable institutions. With this theme, the emphasis is placed on society, that is, on joint action and mutual support as a prerequisite for the development of Mali Lošinj itself, which is presented in the third theme, “The birth of a town”. This topic covers the spatial expansion of the settlement in accordance with the economic orientation of the majority of the population. The last topic, “A view towards the future”, briefly describes the changes in the first half of the 20th century with an emphasis on the basic economic trends whose solid foundations were laid in the 19th century.

Reproductions from the Collection of pictures, postcards and photographs and the Photographic collection of Dante Lussin have been used in the exhibition. Items from the latter collection are also on display. On the walls between the windows are reproductions of photographs of two Lošinj authors with different photographic approaches, Ambroz Haračić and Dante Lussin. Ambroz Haračić (Mali Lošinj, 1855 - 1916), in addition to his regular job and his other duties and hobbies, was also engaged in photography as an amateur. At the end of the 19th century, engaging in the latter activity required knowledge and time, and photographic equipment was expensive. Despite this, Haračić painstakingly documented Lošinj's everyday life and various events. Dante Lussin (Rijeka, 1876 - Mali Lošinj, 1937) was a professional photographer. He came to Mali Lošinj as a postal clerk, where he met and married Romana Lergetporer, the daughter of Benedikt Lergetporer, who had a photography shop there. After Benedikt's death, his daughter Romana and son-in-law Dante took over the work: Romana worked in a photo studio, and Dante toured and photographed the Cres-Lošinj islands to make postcards.

The permanent exhibition “Mali Lošinj in the 19th century - a view towards the future” was designed with the intention of explaining in more detail the circumstances that led to the prosperity of Mali Lošinj and which thus shaped the appearance of the present-day settlement.