Piešťany

Piešťany (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈpɪeʂcani] ⓘ; German: Pistyan, Hungarian: Pöstyén, Polish: Pieszczany [pjɛˈʂtʂanɨ], Czech: Píšťany [ˈpiːʃcanɪ]) is a town in Slovakia.

In another nearby village, Krakovany-Stráže, a treasure consisting of luxury items made of glass, bronze, silver, and gold was discovered in three graves from 200 to 300 AD.

The first book mentioning the Piešťany springs was De admirandis Hungariae aquis hypomnemation (About the Miraculous Waters of the Hungarian Monarchy) by Georgius Wernher, published in 1549 in Basel.

In the 16th century, the Piešťany spa was also mentioned by two prominent physicians, Johann Crato de Crafheim (who served to several Holy Roman Emperors) and Andrea Baccius Elpidianus (a personal surgeon of the Pope).

The first monography (Schediasma de Thermis Postheinsibus by Ján Justus Torkoš [sk] was published in 1745.

[5] In 1917, three monarchs (Wilhelm II of Germany, Karl I of Austria-Hungary, and Ferdinand I of Bulgaria) orchestrated their war strategy during the negotiations in the Thermia Palace hotel.

In 1973 the village of Banka, located on the left bank of the Váh river, was amalgamated with Piešťany, but it regained independence after a referendum in 1995.

On January 4, 1987, at the final match in the World Junior Championships of ice hockey between Canada and the Soviet Union there was a bench-clearing brawl, now famously known as the Punch-up in Piešťany.

They were lured into a trap by agents of the British Security Service MI5 who were posing as arms dealers from Iraq.

[6] Piešťany is situated in the western part of Slovakia, in the valley of the Váh river, at an elevation of 162 metres (531.50 feet).

The spa specializes in treatment of chronic rheumatic and arthritic diseases and post-accident lesions of joints and bones.

Spring water and mud therapy is complemented by electrotherapy, exercise, massage, medication, and diet.

[10] One of important employers in the city during the communist era was the Czechoslovak electronics maker Tesla Piešťany.

It closed down in 1991 and in 1998 its factories were acquired by ON Semiconductor, a former subsidiary of Motorola, keeping a small customer support centre in the town.

Other important employers in the town include Slovak headquarters of financial services company Home Credit Slovakia.

Technický skúšobný ústav Piešťany [sk] is an independent certification, testing and inspection body for conformity assessment of machinery and construction products and consumer goods.

Both opening (in June) and closing (in September) of the summer spa season is connected with big street festivals.

This venue, with a seating capacity of 622, is currently the largest cinema hall in Slovakia and also offers other concerts and theatre shows.

Finally, a new museum at the airport (active since 2004) exhibits a collection related to the Slovak military history from 1945 to 1992.

The House of Arts is the first postwar Slovak theatre building outside Bratislava, being project of architect Ferdinand Milučký [it].

In first half of September, the annual International Film Festival Cinematik is held in various areas of Piešťany.

Venus of Moravany
The Váh river in Piešťany
The Napoleonic Spa
The 8-bit PMD 85 personal computer produced in 1985–1990 by the Czechoslovak Tesla company in Piešťany
A World War I biplane of Milan Rastislav Štefánik in the military museum