Asp (snake)
Venomous snake symbolizing royalty and linked to Cleopatra's death.
The asp, a term derived from the Greek word 'aspis' meaning 'viper', referred to several venomous snake species in the Nile region, most notably the Egyptian cobra. It is notable for its symbolic role in ancient Egypt and its association with the death of Cleopatra.
Quick Facts
- Modern anglicisation
- asp
- Greek origin
- aspis
- Meaning of aspis
- viper
- Likely species
- Egyptian cobra
Facts from the source article.
Did You Know?
- The hypnalis is a legendary asp that kills its victim in their sleep.
- Medieval bestiaries describe the hypnalis as a type of asp.
- Cleopatra placed the hypnalis on her breasts and was freed by death as if by sleep.
Historical representation
Throughout dynastic and Roman Egypt, the asp was a symbol of royalty. Its venom was used for executing criminals deemed deserving of a more dignified death. In some stories of Perseus, after killing Medusa, blood falling on Egypt spawned asps and amphisbaena. According to Plutarch, Cleopatra tested deadly poisons on condemned people and concluded the asp's bite was the least terrible, bringing sleepiness without pain. Some believe the snake was a horned viper, but in 2010, historian Christoph Schaefer and toxicologist Dietrich Mebs concluded Cleopatra used a mixture of hemlock, wolfsbane, and opium. Nonetheless, the image of suicide-by-asp is immortalized in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra, where Cleopatra addresses the asp. Othello also compares his hatred to 'aspics' tongues' in Shakespeare's Othello.
More in Ancient Egypt
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