Both the caduceus and the rod of Asclepius are symbols with snakes wrapped around a wand, a rod or a staff. They both have their origins in Greek mythology, but with very different meanings. In spite of their differing origins, they have both come to represent medicine and healing in the modern world.
History of Asclepius and His Rod
The rod of Asclepius is an ancient Greek symbol of a staff with a snake twined around it. In Greek mythology, Asclepius (also spelled Asklepios) was the son of Apollo and a practitioner of medicine. Hippocrates was a devoted follower of the god Asclepius.
Asclepius was born of Apollo and a human female. Apollo learned that his beloved was unfaithful to him and sent an arrow hurling through her heart. She told him as she lay dying that he should have waited as she was pregnant with his son Asclepius. As she burned on her funeral pyre, Apollo snatched the child out of her womb and took him to the centaur Chiron who raised him with wisdom and the knowledge of medicine.
Asclepius was also taught magic (not the entertaining kind) and he learned to raise the dead. Zeus considered this an offence to the natural order and struck Asclepius dead with a thunder bolt. Asclepius was thus born in fire and died in fire. Zeus realized that Asclepius had been important to humankind and placed him in the sky as the constellation Ophiuchus (serpent-bearer).
One method of devotion and cure for the Greeks was to make a pilgrimage to one of the temples dedicated to Asclepius. There they would sleep in the abaton building, hoping to be visited by Asclepius in their dreams during the night. Upon waking they would tell the priests of their dreams and the priests would prescribe a cure such as a visit to the baths or to a gymnasium, or they would perform rituals to rid them of their illnesses.
Non-venomous snakes were found in abundance at the temples and in the abaton where the worshippers slept. The snakes were considered to represent the god, and were fed by devotees and priests.
After being healed, the devotees would often give a gift to the temple such as an animal sacrifice or a tablet describing the illness and the cure. Another example was to offer a clay representation of the healed body part. Many terra-cotta hands, feet, breasts, arms, legs, etc., were found in excavations of the temples.
The snake symbol represents both death and life, and sometimes medicine can be both harmful and healing. In ancient Greece, some were aware that snake venom that might be fatal if it entered the bloodstream could often be swallowed without the same harmful effects. Snake venom may have been one prescription at the time for a serious illness. The sacred snake of Asclepius represented healing, renewal of youth and resurrection.
Meaning of the Caduceus
The caduceus symbol is sometimes confused with the rod of Asclepius. It is also a Greek symbol, but does not have the original mythic connection with medicine, or healing. The symbol is composed of a wand or staff with two serpents entwined around a pole, with two wings at the top.
Hermes, the Greek god, and Mercury, the Roman god both appear with the caduceus symbol. They are messengers to the gods who represent merchants, commerce, innovation, thieves and magic. The caduceus was their magic wand with which they performed incantations.
The link of the caduceus with medicine arose around the 7th century C.E. when Hermes became associated with alchemy, Hermeticists, mysticism and the occult. Otherwise, the caduceus of old represents commerce and not medicine.
Earlier Model of Snake and Rod or Tree
The earliest examples of sacred snakes wrapped around a pole come from the Sumerian Ningishzida, or Ningizzida, (3rd millennium B.C.E.). Ningizzida was a deity (may have been female and later represented as male) of the underworld and guardian to the entrance to heaven. Ningizzida, a feminine form of name, means "lord of the good tree" in Sumerian and represents, protection, medicine, magic and fertility. Ningizzida was sometimes depicted as a serpent with a human head, and was considered an ancestor of Gilgamesh. It is thought that this may be the origin of the Greek symbols.
Sources:
Blayney, Keith. The Caduceus vs the Staff of Asclepius. Accessed 16 Mar 2010.
New World Encyclopedia. “Asclepius.” Accessed 16 Mar 2010
Reptilian Agenda. "Symbolism and Iconography of the Serpent." Accessed 4 March 2010.
Paula I. Nielson - Paula I. Nielson, Ph.D., holds credentials and interests in anthropology, archaeology, religion, the Middle East and Asia.
