In the villa of the Beneš夫妻 in S. Ústí, a valuable engraving has returned after 88 years

Sezimovo Ústí – Today, after 88 years, an etching by Václav Hollar titled Jerusalem returned to the villa of the second Czechoslovak president Edvard Beneš in Sezimovo Ústí in the Tabor region. It was brought by American Tuska Benes, who is the granddaughter of the president's nephew Bohuš Beneš. Before the war, the president's wife, Hana, dedicated Hollar's etching to his family.

"Symbolically, it is thus returning to the place it belonged," said Benes about the etching, which was in Sezimovo Ústí for the first time today.

"This is a great rarity, and we greatly appreciate that the work is returning to the villa. We had no idea that such an exemplar existed here. So it is a big surprise for us," stated Jakub Smrčka, the director of the Hussite Museum, which manages the villa. The etching will be part of a public exhibition, and according to the director, people will be able to view it starting Tuesday.

The museum in Tabor took over Beneš's villa from the state this year. After more than 50 years, the last will of the president's wife Hana has been fulfilled, who bequeathed the villa to the museum. After her death in 1974, however, the building was acquired by the Office of the Prime Minister, and the facility became a government recreational site.

The villa in Sezimovo Ústí, at the confluence of the Kozský brook and the Lužnice river, was built for the Beneš couple in the early 1930s according to the project of architect Petr Kropáček. The then Foreign Minister and his wife were inspired by Southern French houses. The final shape of the villa was given in 1937 by architect Otokar Fierlinger, who is also the author of the extensive garden's design. The area is also the final resting place of the Beneš couple.