The Golden Wand of Medicine — www.greenwood.com

Book flyer
MS Word
International
MS Word

The Golden Wand of Medicine A History of the Caduceus Symbol in Medicine

(Click to Enlarge)

By Walter J. Friedlander

Foreword by Robert P. Hudson

ISBN: 0-313-28023-1

ISBN-13: 978-0-313-28023-8

DOI:

200 pages, figures, illustrations, photographs

Greenwood Press

Publication: 4/30/1992

List Price: $103.95 (UK Sterling Price: £59.95)

Availability:

Media Type: Hardcover

Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4

Subjects:

Health/Medicine » Health/Medicine (General)

Series Title: Contributions in Medical Studies

Series Number: 35

Reviews:

Many readers will find this book pure bliss, and every medical library should have it.
—New England Journal of Medicine
Dr. Friedlander clarifies great thoroughness, immense learning, and charmingly self-deprecatory wit. . . . Many readers will find this book pure bliss, and every medical library should have it.
—Journal of International Business Studies, First Quarter 1993

Description: The Caduceus, two entwined snakes set upon a rod, was the ancient symbol of Hermes, the Greek god of merchants. Today, it is a common and popular symbol of the medical and allied professions. This book traces the use of the caduceus symbol and answers the question of how it came to be the symbol of medicine. The work begins with a discussion of the symbol's origin as the magic wand of Hermes/Mercury, the Greco-Roman messenger of the gods, and the later identification of Hermes with the Egyptian god Thoth, whose characteristics included wisdom and eloquence. In the 16th and 17th centuries, Friedlander says, the caduceus was associated with wise and eloquent individuals, including some physicians. However, in the early 19th century it was adopted by a medical publisher as a sign, not that he published medical books, but that he was a commercial deliverer of information. Friedlander goes on to indicate that in 1902 the sign was adopted by the U.S. Army as the insignia of its Medical Department. The sign became widely recognized after the exposure it had during World War I. It became frequently used and, once popular, bred popularity. This book will be of interest to those in medical fields, medical historians, and those interested in symbology and iconology.

Table of Contents:

Foreword
Introduction
Definition of the Caduceus
Development of the Structure of the Caduceus
Hermes
Egyptian Hermes
Caduceus in Medicine: Sixteenth Through Nineteenth Centuries
Caduceus as a Printer's Mark
U.S. Army's Medical Department Adopts the Caduceus
Present
Summary
Appendixes: Persistence of Confusion About Hermes
History of the American Medical Association's Official Symbol
Selected Bibliography
Index

LC Card Number: 91-28356

LCC Class: R133

Dewey Class: 610


All rights reserved. Copyright © 1999-2010 ABC-CLIO 130 Cremona Dr., Santa Barbara, CA 93117, 805-968-1911