A day like at the seaside
Five blackthorn graduation towers provide a fresh sea breeze in Bad Nauheim.
Graduation towers
The “dark giants” are a striking feature of the townscape. From April to October, cool, slightly salty air wafts around the large facilities. When you breathe in near them, you immediately feel a pleasant effect on the respiratory tract. But how do the graduation towers actually work?
The graduation towers were once used for salt extraction. They date back to the 18th century when the Nauheim salt works was one of Europe's most modern salt refineries. Then as now, the process is the same: the salty water (brine) from the spring is pumped to the top of the graduation towers. There it flows slowly down the up to ten-metre-high walls of blackthorn bundles. The wind and sun cause some of the water to evaporate and the salt content to rise. The fine salty droplets that form in the evaporation process and are blown away by the wind are then perceived as a fresh sea breeze.
The discovery that the salt crystals in the air (aerosols) are beneficial to health gave the five remaining graduation towers in Bad Nauheim their current purpose as open-air inhalatories.
Places that make you happy
The graduation towers are the perfect place to escape the heat in summer. In the morning and evening hours, it is particularly beautiful when the light of the sun refracts in the millions of water drops. Then, with a little luck, you can even spot a rainbow.
You can enjoy the spectacle from one of the many benches or sunbeds and switch off from everyday life. This works especially well in one of the wicker beach chairs in the health garden.
Facts & Figures
0 Graduation towers
These have been preserved in the town area to this day. In the 18th century, 23 towers with 7 water wheels and 2 windmills were still in operation here.
0 Metres
The total length of the 5 graduation towers. They are the oldest and second longest in Germany.
0 Percent
Saline water has a salt content of only 3 %. The evaporation process at the blackthorn graduation towers increases this to 22 %.
Top 3 activities at the graduation towers
