Asclepius
The god of
medicine, and son of Apollo and the woman Coronis from Thessaly. Coronis was
killed by Apollo before Asclepius was born. She had been unfaithful and Apollo
murdered her, ripping the baby from her womb. When Asclepius was a little
older, Apollo sent him to the wise centaur Cheiron. There, he learnt everything
about healing and went so far that he could bring back the dead to life. This
Asclepius temples were everywhere in
The symbol of Asclepius was the snake, and at his temples, exercise and diets
were practiced - making them into a kind of health-resorts.
The gods' most sacred site was in Epidauros, but there was also a well known
temple on Kos.
In Rome Asclepius was called Aesculapius.
Asclepius also had many epithets:
Agnitas, Aulonius, Causius, Cyrus, Demaenetus, Paidos, Philolaus
