Luka Čeč, the lighthouse keeper in the Postojna Cave, was born in a once modest peasant homestead, who, while preparing for the emperor’s visit in 1818, discovered its inner parts, which were still unknown at the time.
It was this faithful and conscientious worker, who, among other things, took care of the olms in the cave, that also discovered the cave beetle, which later became the first described cave insect and was named the slenderneck beetle. Čeč’s extraordinary discoveries were crucial in making Postojna Cave extremely popular among visitors and researchers from all over the world.
The olm (Proteus anguinus) and the slenderneck beetle (Leptodirus hochenwartii) are the biggest stars of Postojna Cave. Although the slenderneck beetle was discovered by Čeč, it was not named after him in Latin, but after the director of the Carniola Regional Museum, Count Hohenwart, to whom he gave the beetle for research purposes. Similarly, he remained in the background even with his extraordinary cave discovery, as it was not recognised until 20 years after his death.