Description:The author has accumulated in this volume a large amount of descriptive material on the symbolism of the serpent in human thought and culture. The serpent symbol in both its conscious superficial and its deeper unconscious aspect is very widespread and comprehensive and has interpenetrated not only all classes of civilization, from the primitive to the most complex, but likewise has played an important part in the unconscious thinking of individuals. The serpent thus becomes the allegory of an almost endless series of objects of thought into which it winds in a very intricate manner. The various aspects of this serpent symbolism are discussed in detail in this volume, each chapter being limited to one particular type of symbolism, with many references in the text. A few of the subjects discussed are the serpent gods of Egypt, the serpents of Siva, the caduceus, the serpent in medicine and heraldry, various classical and mythological aspects of the serpent symbolism, the meaning of the serpent in various religions, the general subject of primitive ophiolatry, the basilisk, the lamiae, and the serpent as a phallic emblem. Colored frontispiece, many illustrations and plates in the text, a bibliography at the close of each chapter and an index.