Regional Museum in Pleszew
The regional Museum in Pleszew was founded in 1983 in an old postal inn built in the second half of the 19th century. It contains archeological, historic, art and ethnographic collections. Archeological finds are presented on the permanent collection – “The Ancient Region of Pleszew”. The museum organizes numerous temporary exhibitions which cover a wide range of regional topics. Other activities include school field trips, concerts, lectures, meetings and book launches and signings.
The museum has one of the largest national collections of Marian Bogusz (1920-1980), a painter born in Pleszew, which includes 74 paintings and 144 works on paper. Archeological collection features some of the most interesting documents from the town and the region’s past: the Articles of Association of the tailors’ guild issued by Jan of Złotów in 1592, a privilege for the tailors’ guild issued by Aleksander Zaleski of Otok in 1698 and the privilege to hold a town fair issued by Ludwika Koźmińska Sokolnicka in 1783.
The institution is a prominent publisher with a number of monographs, annually issued Pleszew Yearbook (also available as an e-book from the city council website), and research booklets which include academic papers in various fields. The results of the latest research will soon be made available in a new monograph of Pleszew.
The museum boasts a significant collection of postcards presenting Pleszew and the area of the town from the previous century. Many of them are shown in two coffee table books, “Wędrówki po dawnym Pleszewie” and “Wędrówki po Ziemi Pleszewskiej” (“Hiking around Old Pleszew” and “Hiking in the Land of Pleszew”). The two subsequent books, “Pleszew w PRL-u” and “Imaginacje i transformacje. Pleszew 1989-2014” (“Pleszew in the Time of Polish People’s Republic” and “Imaginations and Transformations. Pleszew 1989-2014”), portray the events of the 25 years of freedom.
The museum also takes actions which aim at rediscovering the multicultural and multireligious aspects of our town. For example, the Evangelical Protestant cemetery at Aleja Wojska Polskiego (Polish Army Street) has been a site of ongoing revival works and inventorying since 2012. The cemetery has become a trove of information about the history and tradition of our town from the turn of the 20th century. The progress of works and the inventory documents are regularly updated at www.ewangelicy.pleszew.pl.
Photo: Archives of the Regional Museum in Pleszew
