Decoding serpentine paradox
A sculpture of Asclepius, the Greek god of healing and medicine. CHINA DAILY Imagine a snake — coiled, elusive, and steeped in meaning — emerging from the depth of the world's cultural history to leave its mark on human imagination. Ask the ancient Egyptians, and they'd tell you about Wadjet, the protective goddess of Lower Egypt and guardian of pharaohs, often depicted as a rearing cobra known as the uraeus. After the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt by King Narmer around 3100 BC, the cobra of Wadjet appeared alongside the vulture of Nekhbet, the goddess of Upper Egypt, on the pharaoh's crown, symbolizing the unity of the two lands. Central to Egyptian royal iconography, the snake — crawling close to the earth — was also celebrated for its connection to the soil, symbolizing fertility.
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