Graduation tower in Ciechocinek, Poland

What is a graduation tower?

A graduation tower is a wooden construction traditionally in a shape of long tower. Tower is filled with blackthorn branches. The purpose of the graduation towers in the past was to increase the concentration of salt in saline solution and to obtain salt. Nowadays graduation towers are used in spa towns for artificially creating salt concentration in air similar to sea shore area. Mineral rich water obtained from a local spring is run slowly from the top of the tower. Droplets of saline evaporating and breaking on the branches create a mineral rich aerosol in the vicinity of the tower. The condition of the air around towers highly depends on the weather and is the richest in minerals when evaporation is high, that is sunny and warm days.

Graduation towers in the world

Graduation towers can be found only in Poland, Germany and Austria. In all of those counties towers have been build in towns with mineral rich natural springs. Previously used for salt production, nowadays are a tourist attraction and turned towns into health resorts. Large complex of graduation towers is located in Poland in town Ciechocinek. Ciechocinek became a health resort mainly used by people with respiratory tract problems.