Plaster replica of a Greek statue of Asklepios

Made:
1860-1920; 500-401 BCE in Greece
maker:
Greek
Plaster replica of a Greek statue of Asklepios, god of medicine

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Plaster replica of a Greek statue of Asklepios, god of medicine
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Plaster replica of a Greek statue of Asklepios (Asclepius; Latin: Aesculapius), god of medicine, original found Epidaurus, Greece, probably dating from 5th century BC, cast 1860-1920

Several sources claim that Asclepius was first a physician hero, who was later recognised as the Greek god of healing and medicine with a cult that spread in the 5th century BCE. Various sanctuaries in his name were built throughout Greece as areas of worship and refuges for the ill. These were hospital-like places where priests guided patients through rituals of purification and medical curative practices, regularly involving snakes as part of the healing process.

Unlike this version that represent him as a young man, Asclepius is usually depicted as an old, bearded man, leaning on a heavy staff with a single snake coiled around it, known as the ‘Rod of Asclepius’. The staff of Asclepius (not to be mistaken for a caduceus) was soon associated with healing, becoming, throughout the ages, an established emblem of medicine and curative methods.

Details

Category:
Classical & Medieval Medicine
Collection:
Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection
Object Number:
A654552
Materials:
plaster
type:
statue
credit:
Gillieran, M.