2026-02-06 Fri

Throughout #History, different cultures have acknowledged the importance of preventing and treating illnesses. In ancient #Greece, Asclepius or Asklepios was honored as the #God of medicine. He was the son of #Apollo and #Coronis, a princess from Thessaly, and had many sanctuaries across Greece. For more information on Apollo, please refer to this link: Greek And Roman Deities On Coins-6 . Asclepius later became linked with the Roman god Vediovis. The rod of Asclepius, a staff wrapped with a serpent, is still a common symbol of medicine today.

According to #Popular #stories, #Artemis killed Coronis because of her unfaithfulness to Apollo, and her body was placed on a funeral pyre. In a moment of great importance, Apollo intervened and took the unborn child from her #womb. This led to Asclepius’s name, which means "to cut open." He was then raised by Chiron, the #centaur who had the upper body of a #HUMAN and the lower body of a horse. Chiron became his #teacher in medicine. Asclepius became so skilled that he could bring the dead back to life, which upset the natural #ORDER. As a result, #Zeus struck him down with a #Thunderbolt. However, at Apollo's request, Asclepius was honored by being placed in the #sky as the #Constellation Ophiuchus, known as the Serpent #holder.

A cult devoted to Asclepius started in the 6th century BCE. In #Greek art, he is often shown as a bearded figure holding his serpent-wrapped staff. His image began to appear on coins in the 4th century BCE. The coin featured in this post is a #Silver Drachma from around 350 BCE to 300 BCE, from Argolis in Epidauros, an ancient #city in Greece. With a dia of 20.3 mm and weighing 4.65 grams, the obverse of the coin shows the head of Apollo, wearing a laurel wreath and facing right. The reverse shows Asclepius seated on a #throne, facing left, with his right hand resting on a serpent and his left hand holding a scepter. Greek letters ‘??’ are inscribed below the seat, while the letter ‘E’ on the far right is an abbreviation for ‘Epidauros.’

Interestingly, Asclepius was mainly worshiped at the sanctuary of Epidauros, which became the leading #Healing center of the ancient world. People from all over Greece came to this site looking for relief from their ailments, either through divine intervention or #Medical #care from the priests there.