It was built in the main street ("zakładowa") — a street purely spa in nature, constituting an integral part of the urban development comprising the spa part of the town, in which spas and guest-houses of the 19th and 20th century found their place, creating a special "district" of the town. The building refers in its name to the suburban character of the vicinity which is still readable in the neighbourhood.  Its architecture, in a somewhat larger scale, has been reflected later in the capital city of the region — Kielce, where the Wersal hotel was built.

History

The "Bristol" villa was constructed at the turn of the 19th and 20th century, and since 1905, it had been owned by the Cukierman family who used it as a hotel. In the inter-war period, it was rented by the Ministry of Military Affairs as a military spa hospital. Under Nazi occupation, the occupiers used the building for residential needs of their employees and MPs. Also the then owner, Erzil Cukierman, was hidden in the villa. He survived, and went to Israel after the war. At that time, the buildings was taken over by the state and went under the supervision of the town whose authorities designated it for municipal housing. The building were gradually devastated and only in the 1970s., after a general renovation, adaptation changes and extension, a spa was organised in it by the state enterprise Uzdrowisko Busko-Solec. In 2010, the building was reclaimed from the State Treasury by the Cukierman family who sold it in 2010 to a private company from Kielce. At present, the building has been thoroughly converted, modernised and extended by the northern wing; and it functions as a high-class spa and recreation facility (open in 2014) under the name Bristol Art. & SPA Sanatorium.

Description

The Bristol villa is located to the north from the historic spa complex, near its axis which further on becomes the main promenade. One time it was a free-standing building, but currently it adjoins a new northern pavilion, which is wide, of modern shape, and connects the villa with the structures complementing its functions. It is a corner building, with two representative façades — southern and western one. Built on a rectangular floor plan with side avant-corps from the north, it is three storeys high and covered with a nearly flat roof. Architecture of the building is eclectic. The south-western corner of the two higher storeys is emphasised by a shortened loggia supported on a round column and topped with a turret with an octagonal dome. The façades on the ground floor are separated with rustication and a delicate cornice from the plain surfaces of the upper storeys (which emphasises different functions of the storeys: catering services on the ground floor and residential upper floors), and topped with a distinct cornice.  The outermost axes of the building are emphasised by two-storey-high pilasters flanking them. Among elements worth attention, cast iron balustrades of balconies and staircases may be indicated, as well as wooden carpentry. The villa was built to serve as a hotel, which is reflected in the layout of the interior. It has a two-and-a-half-bay layout, with a staircase located centrally in the northern suite of rooms, in front of the main entrance in the southern façade. Originally, large rooms within the southern suite housed a restaurant and a café, and the upper storeys contained hotel rooms. Currently the "Bristol Villa" has been thoroughly renovated (façades included), converted inside and extended by a modern north wing. It now houses 130 beds and treatment facilities, providing care and hotel services. 

The historic building is accessible, while its interior - mainly for guests and spa customers.

Compiled by Dariusz Kalina, 19.12.2014.

Bibliography

• Karta ewidencyjna zabytków architektury i budownictwa, „Willa Bristol”, compiled by E. Traczyński, Kielce 1997, mps w archiwum Wojewódzkiego Urzędu Ochrony Zabytków w Kielcach i Narodowego Instytutu Dziedzictwa w Warszawie.
• Kalina D., Busko i jego Zdrój, Busko-Zdrój-Kielce-Kraków 2014.
• Mirowski R., Album buski, Busko-Zdrój-Kielce-Kraków 2014.
• Kalina D., Mirowski R., Miasto i gmina Busko-Zdrój. Dzieje i zabytki, Busko-Zdrój-Kielce 2014.