Historical Steam Bath in Innsbruck

Public baths have a very long tradition in Europe, dating back to ancient times. While today we mainly understand "baths" to be sports and leisure facilities, the bathhouses of the Greeks and Romans or the bathhouses of the Middle Ages primarily served the purpose of physical hygiene. However, with the plague epidemics, the bathhouses disappeared due to the risk of infection, and in the Baroque period, people preferred perfume to water for personal hygiene. It was only during the Enlightenment that the importance of personal hygiene for health and well-being was recognized once again.

In rural areas, there were so-called "Bauernbadln" (farmers' baths) since the beginning of the modern era, bathing facilities for the rural population, often located at a healing or thermal spring. However, these were less for daily hygiene and more of an early form of wellness facility. Bathing here was part of recreational and spa stays and a way to relax from the hard physical work.

In urban areas, with the increased need for hygiene from 1800 onwards, "public baths" were increasingly established, also called "Tröpferlbad" in (Eastern) Austria. The provision of running water in residential buildings was the exception until the mid-20th century, and having a full bath at home was rarely possible or not possible at all. Therefore, public washing and bathing facilities were built for workers, first in the mid-19th century in England, and then in Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, and Germany.

In Innsbruck, several public baths were built, particularly in the interwar period, which are still at the highest level both in terms of architectural art and functionality. A special gem is the steam bath in Salurner Straße, which was built in 1926/27 under the city's chief architect Friedrich Konzert, who also planned the indoor swimming pool in Amraserstraße. The Innsbruck steam bath, a striking corner building, stands stylistically between Art Nouveau and New Objectivity and impresses at first sight with many loving, elegant, and quite magnificent details in the interior. The formerly splendidly painted stained glass windows in the entrance area were unfortunately destroyed in the Second World War, but the building itself remained undamaged, fortunately.

In the late 1980s, the Municipal Steam Bath was completely renovated and restored to its former glory, and since its reopening, it shines in all its old splendor. Particularly impressive are the foyer clad in red marble and the pool room with its mosaics and colorful stained glass windows. In contrast to many other public baths that have closed in recent decades, the Innsbruck steam bath is still in operation and is therefore a highly lively cultural and historical monument.

A contribution by Gerhard Waiz