Jachymov Radium Spa

Jáchymov Radium Spa in western Bohemia is the world's first radium spa — a historic fact rooted in the extraordinary scientific heritage of this small mining town, where Marie Curie obtained the pitchblende ore from which she and Pierre Curie first isolated radium in 1898, winning the Nobel Prize that changed the history of physics. The naturally radioactive radon springs that flow from the uranium-bearing ore deposits of the Ore Mountains are used in the spa's famous radon bathing experience, part of a long thermal tradition associated with relaxation and well-being. Jáchymov also claims the further distinction of having given the world its monetary vocabulary — the Joachimsthaler silver coin minted here in the 16th century was abbreviated to 'thaler', which evolved through Dutch 'daler' into the English 'dollar'. This extraordinary spa town combines scientific history, monetary heritage and a genuine thermal bathing tradition.