Interventions

As one of the scholars involved in the archaeological works developed in As Burgas, Prof. Gonzalez Rodríguez introduce us to this indigenous god known as Revve Anabaraego. Because of the quantity and quality of the discoveries related to this deity, it has become a key element to understand the cults of water in the north of Hispania in Roman times, and how they contribute to civic and social construction. The cult of Revve appears in Ourense in the context of As Burgas hot springs, where remains of a dedicated  shrine-pool have been discovered together with several votive altars whose inscriptions revealed this place as a destination of pilgrimages. 

Although Revve can be considered as a paradigmatic figure within the cults of  water, the number of deities within this tradition is enormous, wide spread all over the European continent, with pre-roman cultures like Celtic merging their beliefs with the Greek-Latin pantheon. Names like Apollo and Artemis/Diana appear again and again in different titles, usually linked to the place of devotion: gods of rivers, of fountains, of hot springs, gods that heal wounds and diseases...

In line with previous panels Prof. Matilla Seiquer walks through the knowledge archaeological works reveal us about the ancient cults of water but now  from an anthropological point of view. This perspective draws a continuum between the Greek/Latin deity of Apollo to the Catholic - and modern - idea of Virgin Mary, who is the patron Saint of many thermal towns in Spain. Although titles change from time to time, a link between healing and spirituality remains, sometimes unconscious, sometimes lost  in oblivion. 

To know the history of the archeological site of As Burgas, main hot springs of Ourense, is to know the history of this city. Excavations works developed here for more than one decade revealed a place of long tradition which defines Ourense as a thermal and historical hublot replica town. In the area  two kind of uses coexisted from the middle of the 1st Century; the religious baths, with the shrine-pool devoted to an indigenous god and the hygienic, social and leisure usages concentrated in a Roman balnea. This intensive use of the springs did not disappear with the Classic Age, and thermal baths continue to be used through the Medieval Age as they were a place for pilgrims’ rest and, also, an important resource for artisanal industries. The core role of As Burgas in Ourense is still visible today, as they define our identity as a thermal capital.

What does it means a water being “mineral”? Where does its heat come from? More than two thousand years ago humans started settling around these hot springs of As Burgas under the belief that a sacred power was responsible for the properties of this fluid. Today Science has revealed the truth behind this “mystery”, an explanation immersed in the “magic” of Nature developed through concepts of Geology and Chemistry. Pedro Araújo, Dean of the Science Faculty of the University of Vigo presents  a scientific approach to As Burgas hot springs,  in the belief that understanding the resource is the best way to protect and value it. 

The site of Bath (UK) is almost a paradigm when talking about thermal heritage conservation and enhancement. Since the old Roman settlement of Aquae Sulis until nowadays, this city has been strongly linked to its hot springs. Two milestones have defined today’s city identity, the development of Georgian architecture, in the 18th Century, and the excavations of 1890 which revealed the Roman baths.Today  Bath stands for a modern spa offer that dialogues with an historic heritage whose conservation and communication effort has awarded the city the title of UNESCO World Heritage.

Medieval phenomena of pilgrimages had contributed to built an exception on the classic history of thermal tradition. Although it's commonly believed these practices were damned by Catholic Church, those baths and hot springs located across the great European pilgrimage ways were protected by the clergy as places for pilgrim's rest and hygiene, preventing diseases like the Plague from spreading..That’s the case of Ourense, a city right before Santiago de Compostela in the Mozarabic Way where pilgrims came to sample its hot waters.Several written documents account for that, like the travel diary priest Bernardo de Aldrete wrote in 17th Century describing the thermal fountain of As Burgas. 

From all the Ways of Saint Jacques the French Way is the best known, connecting - since the Middle Ages -  the west end of Europe with the rest of the continent. The best source to learn about this ancient route is the Codex Calixtinus, written in the 12th Century,  where references of  water are spread all across. Water is a element full of symbolism and significances; as a key for survival and as a way of transport (the paths of water) but also a tool of purification and devotion, gained through bathing. Ancient travelers books include several references to spas within the ways to Santiago, as they were beloved stop places for pilgrims to rest and health.

The Via Francigena is  an ancient pathway of pilgrimage connecting Canterbury (UK) with Rome (Italy) across France, Switzerland and Italy. As a diagonal across the European continent, the Via can be seen as a way of cultures, a path of history still alive today, helping to construct the Europe of Peoples. The European Association of the Vie Francigene works developing and safeguarding this route that thousand of pilgrims still walk along today. Awarded as European Cultural Route, the Via has now become a reference of sustainable tourism, a networks system that enhances  the development of territories within. Spa tradition is visible within the route, and it has been developed as an important element within the modern pilgrimages, adding  further value. 

The Ways of Saint Jacques and Vía Francígena are significant examples of what the label of European Cultural Route aims to achieve, a real tool of transnational cooperation. This program was created in 1987 as an element for the preservation of cultural heritage and, since then, it has been progressively oriented to the dialogue between heritage and society as a basis for sustainable development and identity construction. Mrs. Barraca, responsible for the ECR Analysis Unit of the Spanish Government, introduce us to the framework this program has being developed since 2010, when an Enlarged Partial Agreement was established to enable a direct and more active role of national governments within these Routes.

As a physician, the director of Archena Spa has devoted his 25 years-career to the therapeutic uses of thermal water. Archena is well known for their thermal muds, and new exclusive techniques are developed here every day, specially linked to physiotherapy. The new paths for future thermalism must walk towards an integral concept of healthcare, one that conjugates water-related therapies with the work of dietists,  psychologists, etc. breaking the gap between sickness treatment and wellness. A pledge to the medical community to contrast and share their progresses in hydrotherapy was launched in order to gain more public acknowledgement to these medicinal treatments.

When this biologist found the hot springs of Almeida de Sayago and the remains of old abandoned baths in the vicinity, he immediately sensed this was a place “of powerful magic and myths”, and stayed there to reopen the old spa establishment, now completely refurbished. “La Dama Verde” spa (The Green Lady)was named after the green silhouette vegetation draws upon Sayago land when looking from a birds-eye perspective. Acha presents an idea of new thermalism where new spiritualities are built upon the Eastern traditions of yoga, reiki, meditation, etc. Alternative therapies to get the feeling “of a true magic water that carries love and pure life”.

Aqua, Salus, Traditio, Tranquilitas. Four latin words to sum up all philosophy trends behinds balneology. Yesterday and today. Because good old things don’t need to be changed. Fernandéz Chiralt advocate for a new spa tradition that look into the future without losing its bearings; the mineral water as a its raison d'etre and wellness and health as it mission.  Alange Spa keeps itself as a benchmark in Spanish thermal panorama by preserving a tradition as an ancient place of peace and quietness (it’s possible to have a bath in a Roman  thermae from the 3rd Century)  where health comes through the water,  the element that provides true exclusivity and value.

A former holiday spa destination for Royalty, the site of Pedras Salgadas has reinvented itself by enriching  new concepts on well-being with a eco-awareness and a deeper contact with nature. Decimononic buildings of the casino and the spa are now combined with eco-lodges and tree huts completely integrated in the surrounding park, full of vibrant nature.  Spa experiences combining water and greenery, relax and outdoors sports, classic traditionally architecture with innovation and modernity; all developed with full respect and concern for the environment and care for its surroundings.

Thermalism of the 21st Century must be built upon two different dimensions; healthcare but also tourism and leisure. Both realities has been redefined for this new era, since medicine is now focused on prevention and tourism is addressing experiences and emotion, rather that the simple discovery of new places. New concepts as thermoludism or active ageing are arising and increasing popularity, and target public are becoming more and more diverse. Modern spas need to consider these issues to secure their survival in the competitive and saturated panorama of leisure and vacations.

If there’s one area where the whole human community measure how happy and plenty we feel that is the one defined by health. If one lacks, everything else doesn’t matter. Does spirituality has something to do with health? This pallottine father who manages the Spa and Retreat House of Termas El Molinar says yes, advocating for a wider concept of health that goes beyond the simple absence of condition. Health is to live well, and both mind and body need to be taken care of. Spas, as places for health, must be places of peace and quietness where to feel comfortable, and staff’s personal treatment and attention is key to achieve this.