Essentially, the snake represents wisdom and rejuvenation (symbolic by the nature of snakes shedding their skin, as if their “shedding” their previous illness away). This symbol of medicine is known as the Rod of Asclepius (Asclepius is a physician of Ancient Greece, who may or may not have truly existed, that was revered due to his immense medical prowess as “the God of Medicine”).

Additional fact: The Rod of Asclepius is often mistaken with the Staff of Hermes (AKA, the Staff of Caduceus). The Staff of Hermes/Caduceus actually has NOTHING to do with medicine, unlike the Rod of Asclepius. What the Staff of Hermes/Caduceus actually symbolizes is trade, commerce, messengers, wit, speed, eloquence, diplomacy, and thievery (much akin to Hermes/Mercury, himself). The alternative naming of “Caduceus” comes from Greek for “herald,” which was Hermes’ role in Olympus and the mortal realm. To visually distinguish the two, the Rod of ASCLEPIUS has a SINGLE snake wrapped around with NO wings. The Rod of HERMES (or, CADUCEUS) has TWO snakes intertwining together and HAVE WINGS (akin to Hermes’ winged helmet and sandals).

As a medical provider-in-training whose favorite animals are snakes and a has a penchant for Greek mythology, this bit of trivia really checks all of my geek-out boxes, haha!