Šustalova vila a Lašské muzeum Villa

Šustal's villa in Kopřivnik is a historic building from 1889. Originally it served as a representative residence of Josef Šustal, owner of the local pram. The building has been protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic since 1999 and today it works as an administrative background of the Regional Museum in Kopřivnik.

The villa was created during the industrial boom of Austria-Hungary, when Kopřivnice became an important centre of carriage production and later cars. The construction was realized by architect Heinrich Czeike starší for businessman Josef Šustal, who moved into the residence in 1890. At the same time, a villa for Brother Adolf, known as Ringhoffer's, grew in the neighborhood. Both buildings were planted in a common English park, which was consistent with the practice of business families at the time.

Architecturally, the villa is conceived in a historic style on a rectangular plan. The building is undercut and combines one and two floors above ground. An important element is the octave tower in the right front of the building. In 1967 the exhibition hall was added to the villa for museum needs, but it was later demolished.

The family of Shustal's villa lived until the end of World War II. After 1945, as part of the relocation of the Germans from Czechoslovakia, the state administration was evicted and the property was confiscated. Subsequently, the object was acquired by the Lash Museum, which was founded by Emil Hanzelka based on its private collections. The institution was opened to the public on 24 August 1947 and initially focused on the obituary and ceramics. In 1953 it went through the transformation into a museum of automotive and ceramic industry, thus responding to the famous nettle tradition of vehicle production.

In 1997 there was a fundamental change when museum collections were moved to the Technical Museum of Tatra and the Museum of Foodiness. Since then, the villa serves as an administrative building of the Regional Museum in Kopřivice. The Technical Museum of Tatra, the Museum of Foydom and the ruins of the castle Šostín are located in the immediate vicinity.

Šustal's villa represents an important proof of the region's business history and the transformation of the nettle industry. Visiting this place offers an opportunity to become acquainted with the architecture of the late 19th century and the history of the museum in Kopřivice.