AESCULAPIUS (Gr. 'AoKXiprtos)

This article appears in Volume V01, Page 276 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

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AESCULAPIUS (Gr. 'AoKXiprtos) , the legendary Greek god of

medicine

MEDICINE

, the son of Apollo and the nymph Coronis. Tricca in Thessaly and Epidaurus in Argolis disputed the honour of his birthplace, but an oracle declared in favour of Epidaurus. He was educated by the centaur Cheiron, who taught him the art of healing and

hunting

HUNTING (the verbal substantive from " hunt "; O. Eng. huntian, hunta; apparently connected with O. Eng. hentan, Gothic hinpan, to capture, O.H.G. hunda,booty)

. His skill in curing disease and restoring the dead to life aroused the anger of Zeus, who, being afraid that he might render all men immortal, slew him with a thunder-bolt (Apollodorus iii. 1o;

Pindar

PINDAR (Gr. HivSapos, c. 522–443 B.c.)

, Phthia, 3; Diod. Sic. iv. 71).

Homer

HOMER, WINSLOW (1836-191o)

mentions him as a skilful physician, whose sons, Machaon and Podalirius, are the physicians in the Greek camp before Troy (Iliad, ii. 731). Temples were erected to

Aesculapius

AESCULAPIUS (Gr. 'AoKXiprtos)

in many parts of

Greece

GREECE

, near healing springs or on high mountains. The practice of sleeping (incubatio) in these sanctuaries was very common, it being supposed that the god effected cures or pre-scribed remedies to the sick in dreams. All who were healed offered sacrificeespecially a cockand hung up votive tablets, on which were recorded their names, their diseases and the manner in which they had been cured. Many of these votive tablets have been discovered in the course of excavations at Epidaurus. Here was the god's most famous shrine, and games were celebrated in his honour every five years, accompanied by solemn processions. Herodas (Mimes, 4) gives a description of one of his temples, and of the offerings made to. him. His

worship

WORSHIP (i.e. " worth-ship," O. Eng. weor8scipe)

was introduced into Rome by order of the Sibylline books (293 B.c.), to avert a pestilence. The god was fetched from Epidaurus in the form of a snake and a temple assigned him on the

island

ISLAND (O.E. ieg =isle, +land')

in the Tiber (Livy x. 47; Ovid, Metam. xv. 622).

Aesculapius

AESCULAPIUS (Gr. 'AoKXiprtos)

was a favourite subject of ancient artists. He is commonly represented

standing

STANDING

, dressed in a long cloak, with bare breast; his usual attribute is a club-like staff with a serpent (the symbol of renovation) coiled round it. He is often accompanied by

Telesphorus

TELESPHORUS

, the boy genius of healing, and his daughter Hygieia, the goddess of health. Votive reliefs representing such groups have been found near the temple of Aesculapius at Athens. The British Museum possesses a beautiful head of Aesculapius (or possibly Zeus) from Melos, and the
Louvre a magnificent statue.

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