Natural resources
Natural resources of mineral waters, radon, therapeutic mud and spruce constitute the foundation, on which over 200-year-old tradition of this health resort has been built.
Mineral waters provide a healing effect via stimulation of the endocrine system. Furthermore, radon contained in the local air, soil and water has beneficial impact on cellular metabolism, as well as enzymatic processes. Spruce helps with respiratory diseases, while therapeutic mud is mainly recommended for post-traumatic treatment.
History of Świeradów
The founding of Świeradów-Zdrój is associated with a certain legend. It says that the Milceni tribe created a pagan cult centre in this location in the 12th century. They worshiped a golden lion statue, which was placed near the "miraculous spring". Furthermore, the Świeradów’s emblem depicts an armoured knight and a green frog. These symbols are associated with very old legends.
Leonard Thurneyssen, who was a physician, observed a dead frog lying in one of the springs for a long time and was really surprised to find that it didn’t decompose at all. Of course, people didn’t know anything about radon at that time, but it was a proof of the exceptional properties of these waters, which contained it.
The first documented references to a settlement in this area date back to the beginning of the 16th century. The books of Silesian physician Leonard Thurneyssen, which were written in 1572, contained a description of mineral water springs. In 1739, a specialist commission of Count Schaffgotsch scientifically confirmed the healing effect of waters obtained from the surrounding springs. After that, the first health centre was quickly established here.
A new spring was discovered in 1811 and it was named "Dolny Zdrój". After that discovery, in addition to spruce baths, which are the specialty of Świeradów, also therapeutic mud treatments started to be used.
In 1895, a fire destroyed some of the Health Resort buildings, however a new, expanded complex was built already in 1899. Nowadays, the Świeradów-Czerniawa Health Resort is one of the few health resorts in Poland, where peace and quiet, as well as the lack of noise from a crowd of tourists, make it possible to heal and relax all year round. Another attractive quality of this Health Resort are gushing springs of mineral waters and the specific mountainous microclimate.
