Băile Herculane

Coordinates: 44°52′43″N 22°24′51″E / 44.87861°N 22.41417°E / 44.87861; 22.41417
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This article is about the Romanian spa town. For the imperial baths in Roman-era Milan, see Baths of Hercules.
Băile Herculane
Town
Băile Herculane seen from a mountaintop
Băile Herculane seen from a mountaintop
Coat of arms of Băile Herculane
Coat of arms
Location in Caraș-Severin County
Location in Caraș-Severin County
Băile Herculane is located in Romania
Băile Herculane
Băile Herculane
Location in Romania
Coordinates: 44°52′43″N 22°24′51″E / 44.87861°N 22.41417°E / 44.87861; 22.41417
CountryRomania
CountyCaraș-Severin
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2024) Cristian Miclău[1] (PNL)
Area
105.48 km2 (40.73 sq mi)
Elevation
168 m (551 ft)
Population
 (2021-12-01)[2]
3,787
 • Density36/km2 (93/sq mi)
Time zoneEET/EEST (UTC+2/+3)
Postal code
325200
Area code(+40) 02 55
Vehicle reg.CS
Websitewww.primaria-baileherculane.ro

Băile Herculane (Latin: Aqua Herculis; German: Herkulesbad; Hungarian: Herkulesfürdő; Czech: Herkulovy Lázně, Turkish: Lazarethane) is a spa town in Romanian Banat, in Caraș-Severin County, situated in the valley of the Cerna River, between the Mehedinți Mountains to the east and the Cerna Mountains to the west, elevation 168 m (551 ft). Its current population is 3,787. The town administers one village, Pecinișca (Hungarian: Pecsenyeska; from 1912 to 1918 Csernabesenyő).

History[edit]

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1956 1,656—    
1966 2,456+48.3%
1977 3,835+56.1%
1992 6,340+65.3%
2002 6,051−4.6%
2011 5,008−17.2%
2021 3,787−24.4%
Source: Census data

The spa town of Băile Herculane has a long history of human habitation. Numerous archaeological discoveries show that the area has been inhabited since the Paleolithic era. The Peștera Hoților (Cave of the Thieves), contains multiple levels, including one from the Mousterian period, one from the Mesolithic period (late Epigravettian) and several from the later Neolithic periods.

The Romans established the town of Ad Aquas Herculis based on the legend that the weary Hercules stopped in the valley to bathe and rest. Unearthed stone carvings show that visiting Roman aristocrats turned the town into a Roman leisure centre. Six statues of Hercules from the time have been discovered. A bronze replica of one of them, molded in 1874, stands as a landmark in the town centre.

Roman baths, mapped in 1774,[3] became the thermal spring now known as Hygea's Spring, had an area of 667 m2 with 11 rooms. In the middle of the building was a circular pool of 5 m diameter with steps descending to the pool floor. There was another rectangular pool with sides of 8 x 4.2 m. On the steep Cerna bank the Romans built another five buildings around thermal springs.

The ruins of the amphitheatre were 43 m from the left bank of the river. It had an outer diameter of 47.4 m. The Austrian architects took the massive ruins into account in order to create a rectangular park with terraces which still exists today in the centre.

Austrian and Ottoman troops clashed here after the Ottoman victory in the battle of Mehadia on 30 August 1788.[4] The Ottomans won the skirmish, took the town on 7 September 1788 and advanced to Caransebeș. It was retaken by the Austrians at the end of September 1789.

  • Roman baths from 1774
    Roman baths from 1774
  • The town in 1824
    The town in 1824
  • The town around 1900
    The town around 1900
  • The town around 1900
    The town around 1900
  • Romanian stamp of the Hotel Roman
    Romanian stamp of the Hotel Roman

Climate[edit]

Băile Herculane has a humid continental climate (Cfb in the Köppen climate classification).

Climate data for Băile Herculane
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 1.1
(34.0) 		3
(37) 		8.1
(46.6) 		14.1
(57.4) 		18.6
(65.5) 		22.2
(72.0) 		24.4
(75.9) 		24.5
(76.1) 		19.3
(66.7) 		13.6
(56.5) 		7.8
(46.0) 		2.8
(37.0) 		13.3
(55.9)
Daily mean °C (°F) −2.6
(27.3) 		−1.1
(30.0) 		3.3
(37.9) 		9.1
(48.4) 		13.9
(57.0) 		17.6
(63.7) 		19.6
(67.3) 		19.6
(67.3) 		14.7
(58.5) 		9.1
(48.4) 		4.1
(39.4) 		−0.7
(30.7) 		8.9
(48.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −6
(21) 		−4.8
(23.4) 		−1.3
(29.7) 		3.5
(38.3) 		8.3
(46.9) 		12
(54) 		14.1
(57.4) 		14.2
(57.6) 		10.1
(50.2) 		5.1
(41.2) 		1
(34) 		−3.7
(25.3) 		4.4
(39.9)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 70
(2.8) 		66
(2.6) 		76
(3.0) 		98
(3.9) 		116
(4.6) 		110
(4.3) 		94
(3.7) 		75
(3.0) 		79
(3.1) 		74
(2.9) 		75
(3.0) 		81
(3.2) 		1,014
(40.1)
Source: https://en.climate-data.org/europe/romania/caras-severin/baile-herculane-15646/

The modern spa[edit]

In modern times, the spa town has been visited for its supposedly natural healing properties: hot springs with sulfur, chlorine, sodium, calcium, magnesium and other minerals, as well as negatively ionized air. Before World War II, when the first modern hotel was built (i.e. H Cerna, 1930) it remained a popular destination with Western Europeans.[5] During the Communist era, mass tourism facilities were built, such as the 8- to 12-storied concrete hotels Roman, Hercules A, Hercules B, Afrodita, Minerva, Diana, UGSR, etc. which dominate the skyline. It was visited by all kinds of people but was especially popular with employees and retirees, who would spend their state-allotted vacation vouchers there, hoping to improve their health. Today, they share the town with a younger crowd. New privately owned pensions and hotels appeared after 1989, along the Cerna/Tiena river banks, spread from the train station to the end of the hydroelectrical dam. Some of the Austro-Hungarian era buildings have become derelict, including many of the baths, because of bad management after privatization.[6] In the late 2010s, an NGO called the Herculane Project was established to stabilise the buildings and eventually restore them.[7]

Natives[edit]

Image gallery[edit]

  • Main road going into the resort
    Main road going into the resort
  • Spa
    Spa
  • Statue of Hercules
    Statue of Hercules
  • Hercules Square
    Hercules Square
  • Cerna Hotel, founded in 1936
    Cerna Hotel, founded in 1936
  • Roman Hotel
    Roman Hotel
  • The Casino
    The Casino
  • Roman-Catholic Church
    Roman-Catholic Church
  • Railway station
    Railway station
  • Entrance to a nearby cave
    Entrance to a nearby cave

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Results of the 2020 local elections". Central Electoral Bureau. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Populaţia rezidentă după grupa de vârstă, pe județe și municipii, orașe, comune, la 1 decembrie 2021" (XLS). National Institute of Statistics.
  3. ^ Bozu Ovidiu, Öffentliche und Private Gebäude An Den Römischen Strassen Aus Dem Banat, BANATICA 18 2008 ISSN 1222-0612
  4. ^ "Untitled-4". f.eba.gov.tr.
  5. ^ The fashionable crowds of the era are described at pp. 210-211 in Between the Water and the Woods, by Patrick Leigh Fermor (Penguin Books, 1987, ISBN 9780140094305).
  6. ^ Rețineri în dosarul devalizării Băilor Herculane. "Prejudiciul: 123 de milioane de lei", Digi24, retrieved on 13 June 2019 (in Romanian)
  7. ^ "Romania's young history fans battle to save imperial spa resort" by Stephen McGrath, BBC News, 1 February 2021
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