Warning: This collection is now inaccessible to the public due to the reconstruction of the Castle Kinských in Valašské Meziříčí and the related removal and reorganisation of the storage of individual items. We expect from 1. 4. 2022, the collection will be made available again.

Museum in Valašské Meziříčí (MVŠ / 002-05-22 / 283002), part of the Wallachian Regional Museums, has organized its collections into a total of 18 sub-collections - 65,725 registered items and 503,644 movable heritage items. We describe the exact composition of each individual sub-collection in the detailed descriptions below. In 2015, objects from the canceled collection of the Museum in Kelč became a part of our collection as a new sub-collection. Another separate sub-collection was created from objects originating in the Lešná Castle. The largest part of this sub-collection are outcomes of scientific research, mainly entomology, botany and zoology. In our social science collections, an extensive collection of lighting glass from local glassworks, tapestries from the Moravian Tapestry Manufactory and a large ethnographic collection are the most important. Our museum also preserves the estates of famous residents of Valašské Meziříčí and its surroundings and objects related to regional history in general.

Area

25 - Ancient Prints and Manuscript

Sub-collection Description

Although the prints, manuscripts and sheet music scores in this sub-collection were published in different places, all the items have been collected in the areas of Valašské Meziříčí, Vsetín and Rožnov. In the case of the manuscripts, the authors (or copyists) all came from Wallachia. The same is true for the music scores. All the personal estates in the collection document the lives and work of famous residents of the region. The sub-collection of ancient prints and manuscripts covers the period of the 14th century to the beginning of the 20th century and the personal estates cover the 19th and the 20th centuries. Since 1884 when the museum started, the staff has accepted gifts and made purchases to complete the collections. Now the sub-collection of ancient prints and manuscripts contains almost 2,500 prints, manuscripts and songs both of religious and carnival nature. It includes two valuable original editions issued by Jan Kamp's printing house in Prague (Bible Czeská from 1488 and The New Testament from 1497/98). Among the 158 manuscripts, the most valuable pieces are fragments of a manuscript in glagolitic script from the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries and a fragment of a parchment containing liturgical text in Latin from the 14th century. The most important documents in the collection of music scores, which contains both prints and manuscripts, are compositions by František Navrátil from the end of the 18th century. The personal estates of famous Wallachians, which include photographs, correspondence, official and personal documents, awards, etc., are preserved primarily for archival purposes.

No. of Registered Items 5 101
Area

1 - Archaeology

Sub-collection Description

The collection documents the settlement of the area (Valašské Meziříčí, Rožnov and especially the hills near Kelč) with objects from the Paleolithic up to the recent period (ca. 40,000 BC - 1945).

The most significant part of the collection consists of finds associated with the Lusatian urnfield culture. It includes sets from three burial grounds, one housing estate, two deposits of bronze artifacts, archeological material from settlements and a large number of unique individual objects, especially bronze axes. Another significant collection consists of medieval ceramics from the town of Kelč, a fortress in Perná and from the Rožnov castle (tiles). Modern pottery from the whole regions of Kelč and Wallachia complement this historical ceramics. The collection also includes iron artifacts from a castle in Arnoltovice, which include both military instruments and objects of everyday use.

The periods of the Early and Late Stone Age are also significantly represented; there are stone artifacts (flintstones and cut stones) from the turn of the Early and Late Stone Ages and several specimen from the end of the Eneolithic. This set is complemented by tools from chipped stone and two copper axes, which date back to the end of the Early Stone Age. Our prehistoric finds also include bones from the megafauna of the last ice ages.

Regional discoveries are complemented by several discoveries donated by Karel Jaroslav Maška, a prominent Czech archeologist. These finds come from the most important research sites, Štramberk and Přerov-Předmostí. They are a set of Neolithic and Eneolithic cut stone tools from the first site and osteological material from the second site.

No. of Registered Items 1 636
Area

5 – Botany

Sub-collection Description

The botanical sub-collection includes a herbarium containing vascular plants (approx. 15,000 specimens), mosses (approx. 11,500 specimens) and lichens (approx. 1,057 specimens). Dried seeds and fruits (86 specimens) and sections of woody plants (16 items) are also represented in small quantities. Most of the botanical collection comes from the hills in Northeast Moravia: Hostýnské vrchy, Vsetínské vrchy, Javorníky. A smaller part of the collection includes botanical samples from Moravskoslezské Beskydy, White Carpathians and East and Central Slovakia. A few items originated in other areas of the country or of Europe. 

The collection is based on an extensive, comprehensive  "Wallachian Herbarium", compiled by František Gogela in the years 1898–1907. His original herbarium took 18 volumes. Today you can see it in 16 volumes into which it has been reorganized. It  includes almost 1,000 specimens mostly from Hostýnské vrchy. Gogela also created a hand-held herbarium of important Wallachian plants, which he had collected in Beskydy and Podbeskydská pahorkatina. Finally, Gogela put together 39 common mosses into a special set.  

Two volumes of a herbarium by Gustav Říčan from the 1920s form another important part of the botanical collection. These were later supplemented by a set of 76 species of peculiar and rare flowers in the Vsetín district. Field research and collection activities of the museum staff also make up a large part of the botanical collection, as do collections purchased from professional and lay botanists (Oskar Ressel, Milena Kašparová, Jiří Borovička, Ladislav Pokluda, Josef Duda, Martin Dančák, Jana Tkáčiková). The sub-collection is popular among professional researchers, who share the data they obtain with universities and other academic and non-academic institutions, organizations and researchers, who prepare catalogues or net atlases that help to distribute and use the data in scientific journals and other publications.

No. of Registered Items 6 284
Area

25 - Other - Sub-Collection from the Castle in Lešná u Valašského Meziříčí

Sub-collection Description

The sub-collection contains the original equipment of the Lešná castle: paintings, graphics, china, furniture. The objects date from the 16th century to the 1940s, when they were confiscated. The sub-collection was separated from other collections in 2013 and now it consists of three parts: a set of fine arts, a set of applied arts and crafts and a set of hunting trophies.

The core of the art collection are graphics by J. E. Ridinger, which depict hunting scenes and genre graphics from the end of the 18th century. Some of the paintings, drawings and graphics are portraits of the castle owners (Kinský family) and their ancestors and relatives, including Marie von Eber-Eschenbach, an outstanding Austrian writer. The arts and crafts collection consists mainly of castle furniture, with several Baroque pieces and a set of furniture in the Empire style. The hunting trophies include primarily deer trophies from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Originally, the collection was made up of objects that had been confiscated after WWII, but now the museum keeps adding newly acquired artifacts which closely relate to the castle and its history.

No. of Registered Items 515
Area

25 - Other - Collections of the Museum in Kelč

Sub-collection Description

This collection includes objects that were previously in the care of the museum in Kelč (near Valašské Meziříčí). In the early 1970s, the town administration closed the museum and entrusted its collections to the Wallachian Regional Museum. The objects are related to the town and its surroundings.

The sub-collection is divided into three parts: ethnography, history and the Křiček family estate. The Křiček estate contains memorabilia about the father, František Křiček (1848–1891), who worked in Kelč as a headmaster, devoted to supporting the arts. Then there are artifacts related to his sons, composer Jaroslav (1882–1969), poet and translator of international literature Petr (1884–1949) and daughter Pavla, married as Homolková (1886–1972), a teacher, writer and ethnographer. The estate of Jaroslav Křiček is the largest; it contains personal documents, correspondence, manuscripts and prints, books, personal objects, photographs and paintings. The ethnographic collection of the former Kelč museums includes kitchen utensils and dishes made of china, ceramics, wood, metal, straw and glass. It also contains tools, aids for washing and ironing clothes, instruments for processing wool and linen and painted chests. An important part of the collection consists of a pipe workshop and its equipment. Pipe making was traditional in Kelč and the town was famous for it. The history collections include drinking and lighting glass, clocks, weapons and firearms, musical instruments, bells, church sculptures, paintings, coins, badges and seals.

All the objects come from the time period of the 17th century up to date.

No. of Registered Items 2 089
Area

17 - Decorative Arts and Crafts

Sub-collection Description

The sub-collection of decorative arts contains items from the vicinity of Valašské Meziříčí (products of Krásno glassworks) and to some extent also objects from the areas of Rožnov and Vsetín from the19th century to the present. The sub-collection is divided into three sets: the glass set, the glassmaking documentation set and the porcelain/china set. About 90% of the collection consists of glass, especially lighting glass. It is the largest collection of glass lamps in the Czech Republic and it is most unique in Europe. Most of the collection items have been made in the glassworks of the S. Reich & Co. and the subsequent companies (Českomoravské sklárny, n. P. Osvětlovací sklo), which have all been located in Valašské Meziříčí - Krásno. The production of glassworks in Karolinka, Velké Karlovice and utility glass from local households are also marginally represented. The collection of glassmaking documentation contains especially production paperwork from the glassworks in Valašské Meziříčí, such as designs, drawing books, samples of decorative patterns and their catalogs to customer catalogs of complete lighting fixtures. The collection includes hundreds of documents from the period of 1960s all the way to the end of the 20th century. Most of the items in these collections were obtained in 1965 and in 2003 from the showroom of Osvětlovací Sklo. There are also several product catalogs of other European glassworks.

The china collection includes primarily everyday dishes but also objects from the painting workshop of Alois Jaroněk. The sub-collection came to its final shape in 2002, while the glass collection started in the beginning of the 20th century.

No. of Registered Items 4 627
Area

19 - Documents and prints

Sub-collection Description

This sub-collection is again of regional character. It includes documents, letters and maps primarily from the vicinity of Valašské Meziříčí and Rožnov, but also from Vsetín, Frenštát and Nový Jičín. The oldest artifacts date back to the 18th century but the documented time period stretches up til today. Items of documentary, factual and archival nature attest to the development of crafts and industry in the region, the origin and activities of organizations, associations, institutions as well as individual lives. It also contains a set of cartographic materials. The sub-collection complements other museum collections with documentation. It is constantly growing and new materials, especially from donations and collections, are being incorporated. The sub-collection contains evidence of the emergence of new companies and organizations in the region and of activities of political parties and institutions. It includes posters, invitations, catalogs, official documents, personal documents, school certificates, stickers, bankbooks, old workbooks, ID cards, advertising and promotional materials , election leaflets, small brochures, lottery tickets, maps, issues of regional newspapers and magazines, postcards, letters, and others.

No. of Registered Items 4 458
Area

7 - Entomology

Sub-collection Description The sub-collection documents the distribution of insects in the Wallachia region (Vsetín district and its surroundings). The sub-collection also contains numerous collections from the historical area of ​​Moravia and insects from Slovakia. A few samples represent the Balkans and other European countries.The historical collections of insects date back to the early 20th century. The essential part of the central sub-collection consists of collections of insects from the second half of the 20th century and then collections of butterflies from field surveys in 2005–2018. The sub-collection consists mainly of specimens of Coleoptera, Lepidoptera and Diptera. Other orders are represented by a few items only. The entomological sub-collection contains comprehensive sets of insects from the region from the beginning of the 20th century (collectors G. Říčan and F. Hradil) and the second half of the 20th century (O. and M. Grigová, K. Konečný, L. Fiala, J. Starý). The collection of butterflies consists of a central collection, which contains about 30,000 pieces. There are also separate collections of collectors J. Domes, J. Chmel, B. Novotný, part of the collection of F. Dias and Mr. Plachý.
No. of Registered Items 13 603
Area

11 - Ethnography

Sub-collection Description

The ethnographic sub-collection of the museum in Valašské Meziříčí documents the material culture in Wallachia, especially in the Valašské Meziříčí and Rožnov regions. Due to its diversity, it is divided into several sections: the folk clothes and textiles collection contains primarily parts and accessories to folk costumes from Rožnov, Valašské Meziříčí, Vsetín and the surrounding regions; the collection of wooden and metal tools and folk art includes artisan products (gingerbread, dyeing, fabric production and others) and objects related to husbandry (farming equipment, beekeeping, mountain farming, etc.), household items (furniture, lighting, kitchen utensils, etc.); wood carvings, walking sticks, local toys decorated with smoke or traditional patterns from Nový Hrozenkov, musical instruments and many others; and finally the museum preserves an important and extensive collection of ethnographic ceramics, which documents the rich ceramic production in Valašské Meziříčí (pottery by the Hauser family, faience jugs from Valašské Meziříčí and earthenware from local workshops - Wettr, Jaroš and others, as well as the unique pottery from Rajnochovice and other stoneware, earthenware, pottery, faience and other types of ceramics from Wallachia and other areas; another rare set in the care of the museum is a small set of underpaintings on glass.

This sub-collection contains objects mainly from the region of Valašské Meziříčí and Rožnov and to a lesser extent also Vsetín, Frenštát and Nový Jičín. It also covers western Slovakia and Slovakia, although marginally.

The first objects of the ethnography collection were acquired in the 1990s, at a time when the Czechoslavic National Exhibition in Prague was being prepared. The exhibits for this show were used as the basis of the ethnography collection, which then was and is continuously expanded by gifts, collections and targeted purchases. The ethnographic sub-collection covers the period from the 18th to 20th centuries.

No. of Registered Items 4 186
Area

15 - Fine arts

Sub-collection Description

The items in the sub-collection of fine arts come mainly from the territory of the Valašské Meziříčí, Rožnov and Vsetín regions, and their date of origin falls in the time period from the 17th century to the present. The sub-collection is divided into individual sets by the kind of art they represent: paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, printing and tapestries. The largest set comprises of graphics (about 30% of the sub-collection), which contains mainly smaller works (ex libris, New Year's cards) from the 20th century and an extensive set of works by Jožka Baruch. The core of the painting set is the work of regional artists, such as Josef Brož, Josef Hapka, Jaroslava Hýžová, Alois Heja, Augustin Mervart and others. The collection also includes a number of drawings depicting the town of Valašské Meziříčí in the 19th and the 1st half of the 20th century. The sculpture set contains almost three hundred works of art, including several Baroque sculptures: among them church pieces and artworks by J. M. Scherhauf. The prints include religious prints, collector editions and komorní práce. The set of tapestries is the least numerous but it is a very valuable part of the museum's collections because of its unique focus. It documents the production of the oldest tapestry manufactory in the Czech lands which is still in operation, the Moravian Tapestry Manufacture in Valašské Meziříčí. Tapestries designed by R. Schlattauer and J. Kučera from the first half of the 20th century are central to the set. The sub-collection also includes the so-called Suchomel collection, consisting mainly of graphics and paintings by Czech artists of the second half of the 20th century, obtained from the legacy of the collector Adolf Suchomel.

No. of Registered Items 2 082
Area

1 - Geology

Sub-collection Description

The geology collection consists of a small set of cores samples obtained by core drilling during geological surveys of the area.

No. of Registered Items 1
Area 10 - History
Sub-collection Description The sub-collection contains objects from the collection areas around Valašské Meziříčí and Rožnov in the first place, and then from areas of Vsetín, Frenštát and Nový Jičín. The collection items were either manufactured or manufactured and used in these areas from the 16th century to the present. An exception is a set of coins, some of which date back B.C. The collection was started along with the establishment of the museum in 1884 by numerous donations from the members of the museum society and citizens of Valašské Meziříčí and surroundings. The historical sub-collection covers almost all human activities in the region. It contains handicrafts and industrial products, weapons, historical fabrics, furniture, equipment of households and workshops, clocks, toys, various devices, souvenirs, footwear, sport equipment, even stamps, coins and imprints of letter seals (sgraphistics).
No. of Registered Items 5 742
Area

3 - Mineralogy

Sub-collection Description

The mineral collection illustrates the geological development of the region of Wallachia and Kelečské Záhoří. There is also a collection of minerals mainly from Slovenské Rudohoří and several foreign finds. Amber and retinite from the Wallachian village of Študlov represent the most interesting specimens. The most numerous specimens, on the other hand, are phanero-crystalline and crypto-crystalline varieties of quartz such as chalcedony, calcite, amethyst, jasper and carnelian. These semi-precious stones come primarily from the vicinity of Zubří and Choryně, but they can be found along the entire course of Rožnovská Bečva and even further down the river, past the confluence with Vsetínská Bečva. The collection also includes various metal-bearing minerals, such as galena, pyrite and sphalerite. A significant component of the collection is made up of a whole range of silicites from glacial sediments and other silicites such as flint.

Finally, we need to mention garnets from the area of Pulčín.

No. of Registered Items 297
Area

6 - Mycology

Sub-collection Description

The mycological sub-collection consists of herbarium items (exicates) of Ascomycetes and for the most part Basidiomycetes. The sub-collection is focused on rare and endangered species from the Red List of Macromycetes of the Czech Republic. The majority of herbarium items come from Northeast Moravia: Vsetínské vrchy, Javorníky, Moravskoslezké Beskydy; collections from Hostýnské vrchy make up a smaller part of the collection. The main collectors include Jitka Wolfová, Josef Hrnčiřík, Milena Kašparová and Tomáš Kašpar. Rarely do herbarium items represent random collections provided by other collections, for example by regional botanists. The mycological sub-collection and the relevant documentation is available to professional researchers. It supports the study of the taxonomy, distribution, ecology and chemistry of fungi and thus serves to expand knowledge about the spread of each species.

No. of Registered Items 268
Area

4 - Paleontological

Sub-collection Description

The paleontological collection documents the development of living organisms, whether fauna or flora. The majority of the collection items comprises of finds from the vicinity of Kelč, especially from the location of Strážná and Rožnov pod Radhoštěm, the site of Rysova hora. The collection also includes whole sets from Hustopeče nad Bečvou, Skaličky, Štramberk and Jasenice u Lešné and several solitary finds. A small set of objects comes from the villages of Jince and Loděnice v Čechách. The most important find in the collection is probably the holotype of the oligocene dragonfly Oligaeschna Kvaceki.

The most common finds are fossils of fish found in Oligocene-aged strata, such as Lepidopus Glarisianus or Glossanodon Musceli. There is also a relatively large group of bivalves, whose shells are preserved in Jurassic limestone, as well as sea urchins and ammonites. The megafauna of the ice age is also represented; these include the cave bear, the hairy rhinoceros and the hairy mammoth. The Proterozoic period is also represented by trilobites from Jince and Loděnice v Čechách. A number of objects in the collection are also evidence of movement or ingestion (i.e. eating).

Finally, there are a few finds of plants, especially of ferns from the carboniferous period.

No. of Registered Items 1 595
Area

2 - Petrography

Sub-collection Description

The petrographic collection illustrates the geological development of the region of Wallachia and Kelečské Záhoří by pieces of rocks. A variety of sandstones and limestones dominates the collection. There are also many different conglomerates, greywackes and gabbro, different types of chert and some lydites from the vicinity of Prague. The collection also includes pyrite concretions and pelosiderites.

No. of Registered Items 358
Area

8 - Zoology

Sub-collection Description

The sub-collection includes specimens from Moravia and Silesia dating to the 19th century up til today (40,107 objects, 6,253 registered items). A total of 642 fish, amphibian and reptile specimens are stored in fluid. The birds make up almost 1,100 specimens (approx. 950 registered items). A large and an important part of the collection comprises animals preserved by taxidermist Ferdinand Hradil of Kelč (end of the 19th century to the first half of the 20th century), who collected and prepared 377 birds and their eggs. His collection was acquired in the early 1960s. The collection provides valuable evidence about the range of bird species in the areas of Kelč and Podbeskydí (Fryčovice).

The collection also includes older taxidermy mounts by the Falko company from Ostrava but these are missing identification of found locations. The remaining holdings of birds have been acquired as managed purchases by the museum staff. Nests of birds and mammals as well as birds' eggs have been collected since the 1970s, but the collection also includes breast bones, skulls, skins and other preserved specimens (a total of 511 items).

We also take care of some significant collections of small mammals from the natural/native forests of Wallachia from 1976–1996. One third of the mammal collection (a total of 2,478 registered items) is stored in the form of preparations, sections, skins, skulls and other preparations preserved in spirit. Valuable specimens of large mammals include a lynx, a wild cat and a brown bear from the area. The museum also owns the skull of the last bear from the 19th century from Valašská Bystřice.

Our collection of bones of vertebrates (Vertebrata) from owl and raptor bowels is unique nationwide. The specimens were gathered between 1970 and 2005 and the collection includes 35,730 objects and 2,268 registered items. The specimens come from Wallachia, from northern and southern Moravia and from the Vysočina hills. This collection is a precious source of information about the historical distribution of species of birds and mammals across the country.

No. of Registered Items 6 853
Area

25 - Other - Zoology - Evertebrata

Sub-collection Description

The sub-collection aims to document arthropods from the Wallachia region (Vsetín district and surroundings) but it also contains specimens from South Moravia, all of which were gathered primarily in the second half of the 20th century. The sub-collection consists mainly of arthropods from surveys of virgin forest reserves in the area (collected using pitfall traps). All groups of epigeic arthropods are represented.

No. of Registered Items 2 892
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