The Museum of the Orlické Mountains in Rychnov nad Kněžnou was founded thanks to the initiative of the local Museum Association Pelcl, which preserved important historical exhibits and prepared exhibitions of museum objects in Rychnov and other towns. The first exhibition in the museum was held in 1893 on the anniversary of the famous local native, patriot, writer and teacher František Martin Pelc (1734─1801). The museum manages mainly collections on the local history and ethnography of the region, but it also includes, for example, a Jewish memorial to the local native, the writer Karel Poláček. There are not many exhibits from the natural sciences in the exhibition itself, but administered by the museum there are unique ornithological collections, which commemorate the work and life of one of our greatest ornitologists, Karel Plachetka (1877─1961), in the former municipal barracks. The Karel Plachetka Memorial in the former barracks, as the part of the museum is called, contains collections from his legacy, almost 700 birds of 250 different species, which Karel Plachetka mostly prepared himself. The museum thus serves as a very illustrative example of Czech birds, including species that are now virtually extinct. In addition to his zoological expertise, Plachetka was also renowned for his preparation skills and most of the preserved exhibits are still of excellent quality and appearance. Plachetka was one of the first Czech systematic ornithologists, co-founder of the Czech Ornithological Society, organizer of bird censuses and bird ringing in our territory and member of foreign professional societies.
