17.6 The Water of Medevi and Loka
Bergman had previously noted that the water from the Swedish spas was insufficiently analysed [11]. In two papers, Bergman discussed the water from Medevi
[23] and Loka [24]. The water from Medevi had previously been examined by
Hiärne a hundred years earlier. Bergman had received samples of Medevi water
from Alströmer in 1778.
Bergman’s analysis showed it to contain only small amounts of carbon dioxide,
but in addition hydrogen sulphide, iron carbonate, calcium chloride and traces of
sodium chloride. Compared to the Spa and Pyrmont waters, the carbon dioxide
content was lower, but the hydrogen sulphide content was higher and it lacked the,
in Bergman’s opinion, harmful calcium carbonate. The water reportedly had a
stronger taste 30 or 40 years earlier, but Bergman did not exclude that it was the
perception of taste among the witnesses that had decreased with age. In any case,
the water had been very good for Bergman’s own health. Bergman’s paper is much
more than a chemical analysis and tells the history of Medevi and discusses the
properties of the water.
The springs at Loka were exploited in 1725, but failed to reach the success of
Medevi. By the mid-eighteenth century Medevi had become a meeting place for the
Hat Party (Chap. 1), and supporters of the Cap Party and royalists thus had to meet
elsewhere. When, in 1761, the King had to cure his health, his physician Nils Rosén
(Sect. 9.1) suggested Loka. As the King’s health improved, the trip was a success
not only for the King but also for the owner of Loka and for Rosén, who was
ennobled Rosén von Rosenstein.
Bergman’s paper on the Loka springs is of little interest for a chemist, and is
more concerned with the temperature of the water, the amount of water obtained per
hour and the physical properties of the water. Perhaps the paper may have beenvaluable in evaluating the commercial potential of new spas. Bergman reports no
analysis: “Illness prevented me to evaporate the water from the other two wells”.
The paper also includes a long list of diseases treated with Loka water at the local
hospital, and the outcome of the treatment. As of 2019, both Medevi and Loka are
still open and, in addition, Loka is a major brand for bottled mineral water in
Sweden.
17.7 Mineral Water Analysis in Sweden After Bergman
Bergman’s successors in Uppsala did not continue Bergman’s work on mineral
waters. Berzelius, however, made some contributions. As a student, he spent a
summer at Medevi working as physician and at the same time collecting material
for his theses. His pro exercitio thesis [25] reports an analysis of the water and in
his pro gradu thesis [26] he explored the effects of electricity on the patients at
Medevi. Berzelius was later convinced by a physician, Lars Gabriel Werner, to
invest in a mineral water factory in Stockholm, a venture that ended in bankruptcy
242
17 Bergman and the Chemistry of Mineral Waters
Bergman had previously noted that the water from the Swedish spas was insufficiently analysed [11]. In two papers, Bergman discussed the water from Medevi
[23] and Loka [24]. The water from Medevi had previously been examined by
Hiärne a hundred years earlier. Bergman had received samples of Medevi water
from Alströmer in 1778.
Bergman’s analysis showed it to contain only small amounts of carbon dioxide,
but in addition hydrogen sulphide, iron carbonate, calcium chloride and traces of
sodium chloride. Compared to the Spa and Pyrmont waters, the carbon dioxide
content was lower, but the hydrogen sulphide content was higher and it lacked the,
in Bergman’s opinion, harmful calcium carbonate. The water reportedly had a
stronger taste 30 or 40 years earlier, but Bergman did not exclude that it was the
perception of taste among the witnesses that had decreased with age. In any case,
the water had been very good for Bergman’s own health. Bergman’s paper is much
more than a chemical analysis and tells the history of Medevi and discusses the
properties of the water.
The springs at Loka were exploited in 1725, but failed to reach the success of
Medevi. By the mid-eighteenth century Medevi had become a meeting place for the
Hat Party (Chap. 1), and supporters of the Cap Party and royalists thus had to meet
elsewhere. When, in 1761, the King had to cure his health, his physician Nils Rosén
(Sect. 9.1) suggested Loka. As the King’s health improved, the trip was a success
not only for the King but also for the owner of Loka and for Rosén, who was
ennobled Rosén von Rosenstein.
Bergman’s paper on the Loka springs is of little interest for a chemist, and is
more concerned with the temperature of the water, the amount of water obtained per
hour and the physical properties of the water. Perhaps the paper may have beenvaluable in evaluating the commercial potential of new spas. Bergman reports no
analysis: “Illness prevented me to evaporate the water from the other two wells”.
The paper also includes a long list of diseases treated with Loka water at the local
hospital, and the outcome of the treatment. As of 2019, both Medevi and Loka are
still open and, in addition, Loka is a major brand for bottled mineral water in
Sweden.
17.7 Mineral Water Analysis in Sweden After Bergman
Bergman’s successors in Uppsala did not continue Bergman’s work on mineral
waters. Berzelius, however, made some contributions. As a student, he spent a
summer at Medevi working as physician and at the same time collecting material
for his theses. His pro exercitio thesis [25] reports an analysis of the water and in
his pro gradu thesis [26] he explored the effects of electricity on the patients at
Medevi. Berzelius was later convinced by a physician, Lars Gabriel Werner, to
invest in a mineral water factory in Stockholm, a venture that ended in bankruptcy
242
17 Bergman and the Chemistry of Mineral Waters