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There is a similar glyph encoded at U+269A ⚚ STAFF OF HERMES, an alchemical symbol at U+1F750 ALCHEMICAL SYMBOL FOR CADUCEUS, and an astrological one at U+2BDA ⯚ HYGIEA. [For information on how to enter the symbol, see Unicode input (or copy/paste it directly).] These symbols are not provided in all fonts, especially older ones.
The caduceus is the traditional symbol of Hermes and features two snakes winding around an often winged staff. Ancient sources associate Hermes with a variety of attributes, including wisdom, trade, deception, thievery, eloquence, negotiation, and alchemy .
However, his main symbol is the caduceus, a winged staff intertwined with two snakes copulating and carvings of the other gods. [10] In Roman mythology and religion many of Hermes's characteristics belong to Mercury, [11] a name derived from the Latin merx, meaning "merchandise," and the origin of the words "merchant" and "commerce." [3]: 178
[1] [2] Hermes's left arm is bent at the elbow, while his right one hangs freely at his side. [1] He would have held objects in both hands, neither of which survive; his left hand probably held a caduceus, Hermes's most recognisable symbol, while his right a pouch. [1]
Hermes would also be holding a caduceus, the god's famed symbol, and wearing winged sandals (in Hermes of Andros, the feet were restored with no sandals). [3] The craftmanship and harmony of this statue has been much praised, as one of the finest surviving statues in Greece.
Hermes is also commonly seen with a magic wand (caduceus) that is a symbol of the medical profession because of its ability to reconcile conflicts. The statue depicts Mercury holding a traditional welcoming gift of silver coins in his right hand and a snake entwined, winged staff in his left.
"The caduceus has been the official emblem of medicine for four centuries or more. For the ancient Greeks, the winged staff with two serpents entwined was the symbol of Hermes, messenger of the gods and conductor of souls to Hades. Hermes was also the god of travelers, merchants, music, luck, eloquence, cheats and thieves.
During the Renaissance, a number of artists, for example Rubens and Vincenzo Cartari, portrayed Hermathena in art either as two gods acting in conjunction, or as a single deity with the attributes of the other, for example Athene holding the caduceus, which was a symbol of Hermes. [7]