"The symbol's origins are
thought to date to as early
as
2600 BC
in
Mesopotamia,
and there are several
references to a
caduceus-like symbol in the
Bible,
namely in Numbers 21:4–9,
and 2 Kings 18:4. During
the Exodus,
Moses
was instructed by God to
fashion a pole upon which
he was to position a
serpent made of bronze;
when looked upon, this
Nehushtan,
as it was called in
Hebrew,
would spare the lives of
the
Israelites
stricken by venomous snake
bites. The intent was that
people would look upward
and be reminded to pray to
God, but eventually the
meaning was forgotten and
this symbol was apparently
worshiped by the Hebrew
people until the reign of
Hezekiah
as described in 2 Kings
18:4."
