Hakasalmi Villa, Helsinki, Finland

Hakasalmi Villa was built in 1843 by the procurator and privy counsellor Carl Johan Walleen as a combined city and country residence. The architect was E.B. Lohrmann from Berlin. Two wings were added to the front of the main building in 1847, the north one served as a bakery and the south one as a greenhouse. The villa was surrounded by a large English garden.

The municipality of Helsinki bought Hakasalmi from Aurora Karamzin in 1896. After her death the historical museum of state was moved to the villa. Since 1911 it has been owned by Helsinki city museum. Today there are changing exhibitions. The villa itself is one of the rare empire-style buldingins still existing in Helsinki.

User Reviews

Mikko Forsström (2 years ago)
A very nice museum.

HillaryKills (2 years ago)
Very nice area and a large lot. Not sure if this is common but we were here for a gathering and had the place rented out. A ton of space outdoors to mingle and a lot of room inside to lean back and relax or seek shelter from outdoors.

Pekka Tuominen (2 years ago)
The 20's exhibition seems well researched, but maybe all the graphics is a little heavy on the eyes. More of the wi dows might have been left uncovered and still made for an atmospheric show.

Oona Pie (2 years ago)
Cool villa with nice exhibits, specially suitable for showing photographs or paintings, could easily be added value with some live music performances.

Anne Amison (2 years ago)
We really enjoyed our visit to this lovely little museum. The exhibition on Helsinki in the 1920s was interesting and informative.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright twiga-swala

Historic Site of the week

Heraclea Lyncestis

Heraclea Lyncestis was an ancient Greek city in Macedon, ruled later by the Romans. It was founded by Philip II of Macedon in the middle of the 4th century BC. The city was named in honor of the mythological hero Heracles. The name Lynkestis originates from the name of the ancient kingdom, conquered by Philip, where the city was built.

Heraclea was a strategically important town during the Hellenistic period, as it was at the edge of Macedon"s border with Epirus to the west and Paeonia to the north, until the middle of the 2nd century BC, when the Romans conquered Macedon and destroyed its political power. The main Roman road in the area, Via Egnatia went through Heraclea, and Heraclea was an important stop. The prosperity of the city was maintained mainly due to this road.

The Roman emperor Hadrian built a theatre in the center of the town, on a hill, when many buildings in the Roman province of Macedonia were being restored. It began being used during the reign of Antoninus Pius. Inside the theatre there were three animal cages and in the western part a tunnel. The theatre went out of use during the late 4th century AD, when gladiator fights in the Roman Empire were banned, due to the spread of Christianity, the formulation of the Eastern Roman Empire, and the abandonment of, what was then perceived as, pagan rituals and entertainment.

Late Antiquity and Byzantine periods

In the early Byzantine period (4th to 6th centuries AD) Heraclea was an important episcopal centre. A small and a great basilica, the bishop"s residence, and a funerary basilica and the necropolis are some of the remains of this period. Three naves in the Great Basilica are covered with mosaics of very rich floral and figurative iconography; these well preserved mosaics are often regarded as fine examples of the early Christian art period.

The city was sacked by Ostrogoth/Visigoth forces, commanded by Theodoric the Great in 472 AD and again in 479 AD. It was restored in the late 5th and early 6th century. When an earthquake struck in 518 AD, the inhabitants of Heraclea gradually abandoned the city. Subsequently, at the eve of the 7th century, the Dragovites, a Slavic tribe pushed down from the north by the Avars, settled in the area. The last coin issue dates from ca. 585, which suggests that the city was finally captured by the Slavs. As result, in place of the deserted city theatre several huts were built.

The Episcopacy Residence was excavated between 1970 and 1975. The western part was discovered first and the southern side is near the town wall. The luxury rooms are located in the eastern part. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th rooms all have mosaic floors. Between the 3rd and 4th rooms there is a hole that led to the eastern entrance of the residence. The hole was purposefully created between the 4th and 6th century.

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