[Regenerationist Usage of Water's Symbology Between Decaying Spa Resorts Movement and Kneippist Morals]

At the end of the 19th century coexisted in Spain several therapies based on the use of water. Some of them were considered orthodox therapies, some were applied as unorthodox medicines, but all of them relied on the symbolism of water to obtain patients. From the point of view of the orthodoxy, the discourse of medical hydrology, thalassotherapy and hydrotherapy tended to exclude unscientific values. The naturist and kneippist movements, on the other hand, frequently used images of water (especially cold water) as a support for their regenerational projects, using both the material and the moral aspects. Therefore, Kneipp's therapy became a kind of Spanish interpretation of the social catholic reforming attitude.