JÁCHYMOV – gateway to the Ore Mountains

The fortifications of Jáchymov were constructed relatively late, during the town’s greatest prosperity in the early sixteenth century. Although simple in form, they represented an important urban feature and a symbol of municipal rights.

The present-day Hotel Praha originated from the conversion of a former wooden toy and puppet factory. Its transformation into a spa hotel is closely linked to the development of radon spa treatment and the construction of the Radium Palace in the early twentieth century.

The present Radiological and Investigation Institute was established as a specialised facility for direct radium irradiation during the early development of the Jáchymov spa. It reflects the rapid progress of radiological therapy and the effort to create a modern and technically advanced medical environment.

The three Renaissance bridges over the Veseřice stream are among the oldest surviving transport structures in the town. Although they now stand aside from the main traffic route, they testify to sixteenth-century craftsmanship and to the carefully planned regulation of the watercourse during Jáchymov’s period of greatest prosperity.

The Mill Valley and other parts of Jáchymov were for centuries interwoven with a dense network of water mills, hammer works, sawmills and later even power facilities. Their history is closely connected with mining, spa development and the economic life of the town. This overview is based primarily on the work of Vladimír Kříž of Jáchymov, supplemented by additional findings and the town chronicle.

A group of originally independent guesthouses and spa buildings in the lower part of the town was created during the expansion of the Jáchymov spa before the First World War. Their later structural connection resulted in today’s Garni Hotel Astoria.

On the site of the former Lintacker silver smelter, a factory was established in the mid-nineteenth century that became the world centre of uranium colour and later radium production. It was from here that material was sent to Paris, enabling Marie Curie-Skłodowska to isolate radium for the first time.

The functionalist landmark above the spa district of Jáchymov was constructed between 1974 and 1975 as a modern, comprehensive medical facility. Named after Academician František Běhounek, the building is one of the most prominent post-war structures in the town.

The Renaissance building of the Royal Mint, founded between 1532 and 1536 by Ferdinand I of Habsburg, ranks among the most significant monuments of the town. It was here that the famous thalers were struck, giving their name to one of the most widespread currencies in the world – the dollar.

One of the oldest secular buildings of the newly founded town, originally built in 1517 as the Schlik manor court, served for a short time as the first town hall of Jáchymov. Although the building burned down in 1946, its massive cellars survived and were rediscovered in 2016 during the redevelopment of today’s Slovany Square.