Aesculapius

Aesculapius
That stick with the snake curled around it is the staff (the rod) of Aesculapius (also called Asklepios), the ancient god of medicine. His Greek name was Asklepios and his Roman name Aesculapius. In reality, Asklepios may have been a real person who was renowned for his gentle, humane remedies and his humane treatment of the mentally ill. His followers established temples called asclepions, temples of Asklepios, temples of healing. The greatest asklepion was in a grove of trees south of Corinth, Greece where the sick had to spend a night while the proper remedies were revealed during a dream to the priests of the temple and the cured had to make a suitable sacrifice (usually a rooster) to the god. According to mythology, Asculapius had a number of children including Hygieia, the goddess of health (from whose name comes the word "hygiene") and Panaceia, the godess of healing (from whose name comes the word "panacea" for a universal remedy). Today, the staff of Aesculapius is a commonly used symbol of medicine. It is the symbol of the American Medical Association (AMA) and many other medical societies.

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Aes·cu·la·pi·us -pē-əs n PHYSICIAN Aesculapius see STAFF OF AESCULAPIUS

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Aescu·la·pi·us (es″ku-laґpe-əs) [L., from Gr. Asklēpios, son of Apollo and Coronis, tutelary god of medicine] the Greek god or deified hero of medicine and healing. See also under staff.

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • AEsculapius — [AE]s cu*la pi*us, n. [L. Aesculapius, Gr. ?.] (Myth.) The god of medicine. Hence, a physician. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Aesculapius — AESCULAPIUS, i, Gr. Αἰσκληπιὸς, ου, (⇒ Tab. XIII.) 1 §. Namen. Es hieß dieser vermeynte Gott erst Epius, Gr. Ἤπιος, welches so viel, als gelinde oder sanft, bedeutet, entweder, weil er sehr sanftmüthiges Geistes war, oder gelinde Hände in seinen… …   Gründliches mythologisches Lexikon

  • Aesculapius — Aesculapius, bei den Griechen Asklepios, des Apollo Sohn, wurde der Heilkräfte so kundig, daß er selbst Todte erweckte, darum erschlug ihn Zeus mit dem Blitze. Er wurde göttlich verehrt, besonders in Epidaurus, Kos und Rhodus. Dargestellt wurde… …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • Aesculapius —   [lateinisch], griechischer Mythos: Äskulap …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Aesculapius — [es΄kyo͞o lā′pē əs] n. [L < Gr Asklēpios] Rom. Myth. the god of medicine and of healing, son of Apollo: identified with the Greek Asclepius …   English World dictionary

  • AESCULAPIUS — I. AESCULAPIUS Apollinis ex Coronide nymphâ fil. quam Ovid. dicit e Larissa fuisse, et Phlegyae filiam. l. 5. Met. Homer. in Hymn. 15. v. 1. s. Ι᾿ητῆρα νόσων Α᾿σκλήπιον ἄρχομ᾿ ἀείδειν Γ῾τὸν Α᾿πόλλωνος, τὸν ἐμὲνατο δῖκ Κορωνὶς Δωτιῳ εν πεδίῳ,… …   Hofmann J. Lexicon universale

  • Aesculapius — Asklepios (Paris, Louvre) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Aesculapius — noun son of Apollo; a hero and the Roman god of medicine and healing; his daughters were Hygeia and Panacea • Syn: ↑Asclepius, ↑Asklepios • Derivationally related forms: ↑aesculapian • Instance Hypernyms: ↑Greco Roman deity, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • aesculapius' snake — ēəsˈsn noun or aesculapian snake Usage: usually capitalized A Etymology: from Aesculapius, god of medicine : a harmless European snake (Coluber, or Elaphe, longissimus) believed to have been held sacred to Aesculapius by the Romans …   Useful english dictionary

  • Aesculapius — /es kyeuh lay pee euhs/ or, esp. Brit., /ee skeuh /, n. the ancient Roman god of medicine and healing. Cf. Asclepius. * * * …   Universalium

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