Medicine and Snake Symbol

Medicine and Snake Symbol

Snakes have been used as a symbol of medicine and health in different cultures and geographies starting from 3000 BC. There are different opinions about where the symbol was first used. However, when evaluated chronologically, it was first encountered in Sumerian tablets in Mesopotamia, then in Egypt and then in Greek mythology.

Snakes has been used as a symbol of medicine and health in different cultures and geographies starting from 3000 BC. There are different opinions about where the symbol was first used. However, when evaluated chronologically, it was first encountered in Sumerian tablets in Mesopotamia, then in Egypt and then in Greek mythology. Today, snake and wand symbols are used in medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, nursing and veterinary medicine in many parts of the world. It is also used as a logo in medical products, drugs, companies producing and distributing medical equipment, hospitals and medical institutions, and patient follow-up programs in medical applications.

Medical Symbol in Greek Mythology

Koronis and Apollo and the god of health. He used to visit his patients with a snake-wrapped staff and heal him. In the sculptures of Asclepius, he is depicted with a scepter in his hand and a snake wrapped around it. The snake symbol used today in medicine, pharmacy, dentistry and veterinary medicine is based on this.
According to mythology, Asklepios took the treatment too far and started to resurrect the dead. The chief god Zeus and the god of the underworld Hades were disturbed by the immortality of humans. Zeus killed Asclepius with his lightning bolts. The recipe for immortality, which he had before he died, fell to the ground, mixed with the rain and turned into a garlic plant. Hygeia, the daughter of Asklepios, the goddess of cleanliness, used the method of cleaning and protecting health instead of her father's treatment methods. The hygiene term used for the measures taken to prevent diseases today comes from the name of this goddess.
The staff in Asclepius' hand represents the god of goodness, and the snake represents evil. The snake wrapped in a staff represents the coexistence of good and evil.

Symbol of Medicine in Ancient Egypt

Imhoteb, the chief architect, chief priest, astrologer and physician of the palace, who lived in Egypt around 2800 BC, was identified with the Greek god Asklepios. The name of the city of Thebes, where Imhoteb lived, became a symbol of medicine, and the snake, which was the symbol of the city, became a symbol of medicine.

Sumerian Tablets in Mesopotamia

The symbol of the serpent wrapped in a branch was first encountered in Sumerian tablets in Mesopotamia. In the epic of Gilgamesh, it is written that the snake eats the grass of immortality and changes its skin, becomes young and immortal.

Meaning of Medicine Symbol

Different meanings have been attributed to the symbol of the snake wrapped around the staff in different cultures.The snake represents good and evil.

  • ·         One of the two snakes is good and the other is evil. 
  • ·         The snake changes its skin and rejuvenates and represents immortality.
  • ·         Snake kills venom but is also used to make antidotes. 
  • ·         The snake lives both underground and above ground and carries the power of the soil to the ground. 
  • ·         The snake connects the earth from the darkness of the underground. 
  • ·         The staff or branch shows the relationship between the earth and the earth. 
  • ·         Asa is a plant like many medicinal plants. 
  • ·         The wand is the support of the sick or handicapped person.


Referance:

  • ·         Lokman Hekim Journal XI. National Conference on the History of Turkish Pharmacy 25-28 May 2014 http://lokmanhekim.mersin.edu.tr
  • ·         Tıbbın Sembolü Olarak Neden Yılan Figürü Kullanılır? 17 Ağustoz 2017 https://doktorlarsitesi.net/2017/08/17/tibbin-sembolu-olarak-yilan-figuru-kullanilir/



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