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The most interesting historical monument, which is still used as a spa facility.The youngest daughter of Šimon Sina, Iphigenia who married the French nobleman de Castries and later count d´Harcourt became the hereditary owner of the spa in 1876. In addition to flourishing construction activities, Iphigenia also promoted the professional treatment. She thus entrusted the noted balneologist Dr.J.Heinrich with the management of the spa and he set out to purposefully built Trenčianske Teplice into a modern spa community with the corresponding hygienic, aesthetic and operating standard. The desire of the new owner to enhance the attractiveness of the spa incited her to seek new and new ways of its improvement.
She found inspiration when she happened to visit the World Exhibition in Paris /1885/ where she saw a plastic model of a luxurious spa establishment, designed in the beautiful Moorish style, very demanding in terms of artistic execution. František Schmoranz, director of the School of Arts and Crafts in Prague, who acted at the time as the court architect of the Egyptian viceroy Izmail, exhibited the model. According to this model, Hammam (Arabic word for the bath) was already built in Egypt, next to the summer residence of the Egyptian viceroy Izmail, also built according to the plans of František Schmoranz. Iphigenia was captivated by the project. She left for Egypt where she asked viceroy Izmail to give his permission for building such a Hammam also at Trenčianske Teplice. Izmail nit only gave the permission, but also sent his court architect František Schmoranz with her to Trenčianske Teplice and, soon afterwards, the work was begun there at this costly and magnificent building situated next to the Sina thermal – water pool. The building had this time no parallel anywhere in Europe. Under the hands of skilful artisans and craftsmen, Hammam was completed two years later, in 1888, and up to the present days is one of the most interesting and the most valuable monuments of Trenčianske Teplice. The first thing a visitor notices in entering the building is the illumination of the Hammam hall from three domes with glazed apertures, giving the impression of star-spangled sky.
The building is practically windowless, as is typical of all Moorish-Arabic buildings.
The architect Schmoranz, inspired by church rose windows, arranged on the walls two colourful rose-window-like patterns. Two rows of columns carved out of fine sandstone separate the hall from bath cabins, lined with decorative tiles. These were made especially for the Hammam building and, every other bears the initials of Iphigenia de Ca- stries – IC. The gallery railing is carved out of a single piece of stone. The stripes of arabesques lead to the three domes making up the vault of the whole building.
A marble fountain is situated in the middle of the hall and two decorative Moresque stoves flank its sides. On the southern end of the hall, the name František Schmoranz with the date in Roman numbers is engraved into one of the stones on the left side under the railing.
Originally Hammam served as the tub bath.
At that time it was the most expensive bath at Trenčianske Teplice, as it spelled attraction for higher society, especially the aristocracy and financial magnates. The countess Paulina Meternich, granddaughter of the famous Austrian chancellor, also had her cabin there. She was a regular guest of the spa and over the many years of her visits there, she exerted a great influence on Iphigenia de Castries – d´Harcourt who made many investments at Trenčianske Teplice upon her advice.
Today Hammam serves for the relaxation of the patients after the bath and for giving massages.
The Sina family owned the spa until 1909. Then is started to change owners up to 1948 when it passed to the State ownership. Since 1995 the owner of the spa is Private Limited Company, Slovak health resort Trenčianske Teplice.
   
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Hammam "Hamman 82kB"){kind=small}
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