Rod of Asclepius

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Rod of Asclepius

The Rod of Asclepius is an ancient Greek symbol associated with astrology and healing the sick with medicine. It consists of a serpent entwined around a staff. Asclepius, the son of Apollo, was practitioner of medicine in ancient Greek mythology. He was instructed in medicine by the centaur Chiron also connected to the constellation Ophiuchus.

1 Symbolism
2 Other facts
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Symbolism

The Rod of Asclepius symbolizes the healing arts by combining the serpent, which in shedding its skin is a symbol of rebirth and fertility, with the staff, a symbol of authority, befitting the god of Medicine. The snake wrapped around the staff is widely claimed to be a species of Rat snake, Elaphe longissima, also known as the Aesculapian (Asclepian) snake. It is native to southeastern Europe, Asia Minor, and some central European spa regions, apparently brought there by Romans for their healing properties.

Some scholars have suggested that the symbol once represented a worm wrapped around a rod; parasitic worms such as the "guinea worm" (Dracunculus medinensis) were common in ancient times, and were extracted from beneath the skin by winding them slowly around a stick. Physicians may have advertised this common service by posting a sign depicting a worm on a rod.

Asclepius was said to have learned the art of healing from Chiron, and is shown holding a stick with a serpent coiled around it. Serving as a surgeon on the ship, the Argo, Asclepius was so skilled in the medical arts, that he was reputed to have brought patients back from the dead. For this, he was punished, according to Greek mythology, and placed in the heavens as the constellation Ophiuchus. This symbol is now used as the symbol of western medicine.

Asclepius himself, in traditional Greek mythology, was reputed to have the blood of Medusa in his veins. The blood that flowed on Medusa's left side was said to be fatal poison. The blood from her right side was beneficial. Asclepius was also known as Ophiuchus, the son of Apollo, to the ancient Greeks. In early Christian theology, the constellation Ophiuchus was associated with Saint Paul holding the Maltese Viper.

In Astrology, some systems include a thirteenth sign of the zodiac, which is the constellation Ophiuchus, and is known as Ophiuchus Serpentarius (the "serpent holder"). This constellation lies between Sagittarius and Libra in the astrological charts.

In Hebrew theology, a similar symbol, Nehushtan, is mentioned in the Bible in Numbers 21:4–9. Attacked by a plague of snakes in the wilderness, Moses holds up a serpent made from bronze so that the Israelites might recover from the bites. The serpent itself was seen as a powerful healing tool.

[edit] Other facts

The Star of Life features a Rod of Asclepius

Widely recognised uses include the logos of the World Health Organization, the Star of Life, the American Medical Association, the Canadian Medical Association, and the American Veterinary Medical Association.
The Rod of Asclepius is frequently confused with the caduceus, which is a symbol of commerce associated with the god Hermes.
It has its own Unicode representation (⚕) on the Miscellaneous Symbols table of the Unicode Standard at U+2695.