The Good and Evil Serpent (27 page)

If the female figure on the vase is Hygieia, then surely the vase is most likely related to the Jerusalem shrine of Asclepius and Hygieia. One way to advance this argument would be to demonstrate that the woman depicted on the vase should be identified as Hygieia. The iconography favors this possibility. The woman is not nude like a goddess; she is draped like a human or demigoddess.
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She seems to be holding in her left hand a long ceremonial staff
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or torch (perhaps to give light to the underworld or to symbolize the knowledge of healing).
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In her right hand, which points to the ground,
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is a staff that could be the one associated with her father, Asclepius.
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The staff denotes, inter alia, support for the weak,
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and the attention necessary for the physician.
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Note how Ovid has Asclepius state: “Look upon this serpent which twines about my staff.”
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I know of no other Asclepian cult in or near Jerusalem except the one at Bethzatha (Bethesda), and the “Vase of Bethzatha” was discovered near the two pools of Bethzatha.

Those who wish to claim that such a hypothesis cannot be proved should note that not one “of the Asclepius statues that are extant can be identified with certainty as one of the sacred cult statues of the god.”
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As scientists, we are not governed by claims of proof or the criterion of certainty. We should strive to obtain the closest approximation to the probable or conceivable, and the coins minted in Jerusalem showing Hygieia help ground the conclusion that this vase was associated with the cult of Asclepius and Hygieia that was in Jerusalem, most likely at Bethzatha.

Clermont-Ganneau concluded his assessment of this vase with these words: “The vase, which I propose to call the Vase of Bethzatha, remains one of the most precious archaeological objects that Jerusalem has yet produced; and I do not doubt that the interest it will excite among savants will equal the curiosity that it will excite among the public.”
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Unfortunately, the object was never published. Its description was hidden in Clermont-Ganneau’s words, and the object itself is not on public display. One might consider this object to be a fake, but it was discovered by Clermont-Ganneau and, being retrieved in fragments, was not planted falsely.

Figure 45
. Glass Serpent. Courtesy of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum Museum, Jerusalem. JHC

Why was this object never accurately documented? Only now—over a century later—is the “Vase of Bethzatha” mentioned in something more than a letter or an article about explorations of the Holy Land by the English.
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Now, we may publish a photograph and preliminary analysis of this intriguing, if rather unattractive anguine object.
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A ceramic fragment with an image of a serpent was discovered in Jerusalem or nearby.
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It probably dates from the early Roman period. Human faces (only five remain) and a large serpent are appliqued to the outside walls of a vessel. The skin of the serpent is marked by artistic indentations in the clay, and notably, the serpent’s mouth is opened wide. Did this feature indicate that the serpent was the symbol of wisdom? This could be the meaning intended by the author or supplied by some who saw it. Numerous legends about serpents whispering insights into the ears of kings and gods are known from antiquity (as we learned in earlier chapters). Most likely the fragment is the remains of a votive offering; perhaps it was part of a vessel used in Jerusalem’s Asklepieion. Does its lack of sophistication and almost crudeness help us with the Bethzatha Vase that is strikingly unattractive and may have been a model for a vessel perhaps fashioned in bronze? It is a pity that the Bethzatha Vase and the fragment were not recovered from a controlled archaeological excavation.

The anguine object in
Fig. 45
is housed in the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum (SBF) Museum, Jerusalem.
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It is made of glass and is 7.4 centimeters long, 3.7 centimeters wide, and. 4 centimeter thick. The glass is translucent and green, but black dots signify eyes and skin; the dots are slightly larger for the eyes. I would judge this glass ophidian object to date from the Roman Period. Its high quality points to the early Roman Period. It is similar to numerous glass objects and glassware that clearly antedate 70
CE
. Most ancient glass serpents from the area of Jerusalem are dated to the first centuries
BCE
or
CE
.
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Figure 46
. Serpents. Courtesy of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum Museum, Jerusalem. JHC

The eyes and skin are impressively marked. The pointed nose is shaped by an area of the glass that is slightly raised. The artistically shaped head is raised 1.4 centimeters above the level for the body. The serpent’s body is straight until midway when it is coiled up into three concentric circles.

This ophidian object is unique; I have not seen anything to compare with it. Its beauty and the artisan’s skill may suggest that the serpent served in some cultic capacity. The raised head might symbolize, like the uraeus, divinity and power. The attractive translucent glass could evoke thoughts about beauty, health, happiness, and rejuvenation. The coiled and concentric body might represent the unity of time and cosmos; it would thus have the symbolic meaning associated with the Ouroboros.

The two serpents, and the two small uraei, shown in
Fig. 46
are also housed in the SBF Museum. The small bronze serpent is 9.2 centimeters long and now dark green. The object was purchased from an antiquities dealer in the Old City of Jerusalem, and thus the site in which it was discovered cannot be examined to ascertain its date. It can be dated only by analogy and a study of the object itself. The glass has circular holes that indicate skin. I would date it to the Roman Period, primarily because of the quality of the glass and workmanship.

The small serpent is elongated and straight, although a curve appears just before the triangular head. Eyes are indicated by clear circles cut into the bronze. Originally there was a piece of glass in each of the eleven holes, but only one round piece of glass (rather clear) remains in place. It is in the second hole from the left.

No hole in the object suggests that the serpent was intended to be worn. It may have been a cultic object because of its intricate details and fine design. The elongation could denote unity, and the triangular head a poisonous serpent that might denote good and evil, as well as life and death. Again, it is important to recall the multivalent nature of serpent symbolism and the power of the serpent to denote both-and (double entendre).

The larger serpent is composed of silver; it is 26 centimeters long (the tail may be broken off). It is copper-colored; in places it is dark. Since the object was also purchased, we cannot rely on what a Bedouin or a dealer might claim, even if they were being as honest as training and experience might allow. The ophidian object must be dated by analogy. I would compare it with the copper and gilded serpent found at Timna’. They are similarly constructed; that is, they depict serpents crawling and are relatively long. It is impossible to date the object; it might date as early as the Late Bronze Age (1550–1200
BCE)
or as late as the Roman Period.

The serpent is long; the five curves most likely were crafted to indicate that it is moving. The skin is elegantly denoted with fine markings. The eyes and mouth are barely visible. The head is raised. 6 centimeter above the level of the body.

This serpent also may have been a cultic object because of its elegance and fine workmanship. It is similar to the copper serpent with gilding that was found at Timna’ in a cultic context. The curves would evoke thoughts about dynamism and speed, as well as the elusive and mysterious quality of the serpent.

It is conceivable that these anguine objects are associated with Bethzatha because of their presence in the SBF Museum just to the west of it. One must not forget, however, that these realia were purchased and placed in the museum. What can be known about Bethzatha? Votive offerings have been found there, as indicated earlier, and they seem associated with an Asklepieion.

Ophidian Cults in Ancient Palestine: The Meaning of the Serpent Images

In her article entitled “The Bronze Serpent in the Israelite Cult,” Karen R. Joines explained the meaning of the images as follows: “Apparently, the answer is to be found in its associations with other cultic emblems, most notably with sex and sexual organs, the bull, water, and the dove.”
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This answer is helpful and a good beginning, but ophidian symbolism is much more complex and variegated. Far more representative is Joines’ conclusion that the “association of the serpent with water accentuates the intermingling of the serpent symbol with the fertility of the earth, for this reptile was often observed in or near water, the means of life for both animals and vegetation.”
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As we have seen, the serpent symbolized far more than what Joines has suggested.

Archaeological realia show the serpents appearing alone, in pairs, and in various numbers. Serpents are often found iconographically paired with scorpions, bulls, lions, and doves. The scorpion added to the threatening bite of the serpent and may have increased its chthonic symbolism as a source of death as well as life. The bull strengthened the ability of the serpent to symbolize power, protection, and divinity. The lion increased the royal and divine symbolic dimensions of the serpent. The image of the dove with ophidian symbolism added to the serpent’s ability to symbolize a transcendence from the earth, an ascension into the heavens where Wisdom seems to dwell, and perhaps the source of new and rejuvenated life. Most likely each, especially the dove,
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removed the negative symbolic dimension of the serpent and increased its friendliness to humans. Thus, the meanings of ophidian symbolism in the Land, which is decidedly inferior in quality to that found in Egypt to the south and in what is now Turkey to the north,
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are usually positive and clearly multivalent. Perhaps one of the attractive aspects of ophidian symbolism is its ability to denote and evoke a wide range of possible meanings.

The following categories seem to capture the meaning probably intended by one who used a serpent symbol and the additional meanings supplied by later observers. The categories clearly overlap, and more than one meaning was most likely intended by an author and surely by any observer.

The serpent is often found associated with the cult, and the iconography is often discovered in a stratum linked with the cult. Joines concludes that “the cultic significance of the serpent in the Ancient Near East, whether the symbol be of bronze or pottery, from a sanctuary or a tomb, was that of fertility and the return of life.”
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This conclusion is not necessarily wrong, but it is rather bold and tends to impose too much systematization and harmonization on the archaeological evidence of ophidian symbolism in the Land. In some sites and tells this might be warranted as the primary meaning in some strata, but not all, and surely not in all locations. As we have seen, the archaeological evidence is vast and variegated.

At Gezer the serpent from the Late Bronze Age stratum was discovered in the high place.
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It is thus probably linked with some positive meaning in the cult.