Steam bath

Klafs ABC of well-being

The sweat bath – forerunner of the sauna as we know it today – dates back to the stone ages. Even today, traces of sweat baths can be found across the entire northern hemisphere. There’s a simple explanation from this frequent recurrence: air is easier to heat than water, for which suitable receptacles would have been necessary – which people would also have had to carry around with them on their travels. However, a cave, a pit, a hut or a tent could easily be turned into a steam bath with very little effort. All that was required for such a transformation were stones heated in a fire, and perhaps a little water to pour over the hot stones.