Editing Caduceus (section)

{{short description|Staff carried by Hermes in Greek mythology}}
{{About-distinguish-text|a staff entwined with two serpents|the [[Rod of Asclepius]], entwined with one serpent}}
<!--NOTE: If you intend to add any information about the caduceus as a medical symbol, please read this article and 'Rod of Asclepius' article in their entirety first, as there is much confusion between the two. Any uncited contribution referring to the caduceus as a medical symbol will be removed per WP:CITE and WP:V.-->
[[File:Caduceus.svg|thumb|upright|Modern depiction of the caduceus as the symbol of logistics]]
[[File:Hermes Ingenui Pio-Clementino Inv544.jpg|thumb|upright|{{lang|la|Hermes Ingenui}}{{efn|It is unclear whether the inscription refers to a patron who paid for the statue, or to the sculptor of the statue.}} carrying a winged caduceus upright in his left hand. A Roman copy after a Greek original of the 5th century BCE ([[Museo Pio-Clementino]], [[Rome]])]]

The '''caduceus''' (☤; {{IPAc-en|k|ə|ˈ|dj|uː|ʃ|ə|s|,_|-|s|i|ə|s}}; {{etymology|la|{{wikt-lang|la|cādūceus}}|}}, {{etymology|grc|''{{wikt-lang|grc|κηρύκειον}}'' ({{grc-transl|κηρύκειον}})|herald's wand, staff}}){{efn|The Latin word {{wikt-lang|la|cādūceus}} is an adaptation of the Greek word, itself derived {{etymology|grc|''{{wikt-lang|grc|κῆρυξ}}'' ({{grc-transl|κῆρυξ}})|messenger, herald, envoy}}.<ref>Liddell and Scott, ''Greek–English Lexicon''</ref>{{sfnp|Tyson|1932|page=493}}}} is the staff carried by [[Hermes]] in [[Greek mythology]] and consequently by [[Hermes Trismegistus]] in Greco-Egyptian mythology. The same staff was borne by other heralds like [[Iris (mythology)|Iris]], the messenger of [[Hera]]. The short staff is entwined by two [[serpent (mythology)|serpents]], sometimes surmounted by wings.  In Roman iconography, it was depicted being carried in the left hand of [[Mercury (mythology)|Mercury]], the messenger of the gods.

Some accounts assert that the oldest imagery of the caduceus is rooted in Mesopotamia with the Sumerian god [[Ningishzida]]; his symbol, a staff with two snakes intertwined around it, dates back to 4000&nbsp;BC to 3000&nbsp;BC.<ref>Gary Lachman, ''The Quest for Hermes Trismigestus'', 2011, Chapter 3, p. x.</ref> This iconography may have been a representation of two snakes copulating.{{sfnp|Lisman|2013|p=34}}

As a symbol, it represents Hermes (or the Roman Mercury), and by extension trades, occupations, or undertakings associated with the god. In later [[Classical antiquity|Antiquity]], the caduceus provided the basis for the [[astronomical symbol]] for [[Mercury (planet)|planet Mercury]]. Thus, through its use in [[astrology]], [[alchemy]], and [[astronomy]] it has come to denote the planet Mercury and by extension the eponymous [[Mercury (element)|planetary metal]]. It is said that the wand would wake the sleeping and send the awake to sleep. If applied to the dying, their death was gentle; if applied to the dead, they returned to life.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://archive.org/details/livesnecromance04godwgoog |title=Lives of the Necromancers |author=William Godwin |year=1876 |page=37 }}</ref>

By extension of its association with Mercury and Hermes, the caduceus is also a symbol of commerce and negotiation, two realms in which exchange balanced by reciprocity is recognized as an ideal.<ref name=Hermes>{{cite web |publisher=[[Unicode Consortium]] |title=Miscellaneous Symbols |quote={{unichar|269A|Staff of Hermes}} signifies a commercial term or commerce |url=https://www.unicode.org/charts/nameslist/n_2600.html |access-date=2021-09-14 |archive-date=2012-12-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121204210303/https://www.unicode.org/charts/nameslist/n_2600.html |url-status=live }}</ref>{{sfnp|Friedlander|1992 |page=83}}<ref>{{cite book |quote=In modern times the caduceus figures as a symbol of commerce, since [[Mercury (mythology)|Mercury]] is the god of commerce |first=M. Oldfield |last=Howey |title=The Encircled Serpent: A Study of Serpent Symbolism in All Countries and Ages |publisher=Arthur Richmond Co. |location=New York |date=1955 |page=77}}</ref> This association is ancient, and consistent from [[classical antiquity]] to modernity.<ref>{{cite book |quote=The name of the god Mercury cannot be disassociated from the word {{lang|la|merx}}, which means merchandise. Such was the sentiment of the ancients. |editor-first=Yves |editor-last=Bonnefoy |translator=Wendy Doniger  |title=Roman and European Mythologies |publisher=University of Chicago Press |date=1992 |page=135}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |quote=Mercury was the Roman name for the Greek god Hermes. His Latin name was apparently derived from merx or mercator, a merchant.|first=Michael E. |last=Bakich |title=The Cambridge Planetary Handbook |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=2000 |page=85}}</ref> The caduceus is also a symbol of printing, by extension of the attributes of Mercury associated with writing and eloquence.

Although the [[Rod of Asclepius]], which has only one snake and no wings, is the traditional and more widely used symbol of medicine, the [[caduceus as a symbol of medicine|caduceus is sometimes used]] by healthcare organizations. Given that the caduceus is primarily a symbol of commerce and other non-medical symbology, many healthcare professionals disapprove of this use.<ref name=Engle/>
<!-- NOTE: If you intend to add any information about the caduceus as a medical symbol, please read this article and 'Rod of Asclepius' article in their entirety first, as there is much confusion between the two. Any uncited contribution referring to the caduceus as a medical symbol will be removed per WP:CITE and WP:V. -->