Caduceus is a continuation of the older Indo-European dragon-slayer motif. Wilhelm Heinrich Roscher (1913) pointed out that the serpent as an attribute of both Hermes and Asclepius is a variant of the "pre-historic semi-chthonic serpent hero known at Delphi as Python", who in classical mythology is slain by Apollo. One Greek myth of origin of the caduceus is part of the story of Tiresias, who found two snakes copulating and killed the female with his staff. Tiresias was immediately turned into a woman, and so remained until he was able to repeat the act with the male snake seven years later.
Serpent Trail Serpent Trail The Serpent Trail is a 64-mile long distance footpath. It runs from Haslemere to Petersfield, which are 11 miles apart in a straight line, by a route which is designed to join up the many heathland areas on greensand in the western Weald. The path takes its name both from its serpentine shape and from passing through habitat of all three British species of snake (adder, grass snake and smooth snake). From Haslemere High Street the trail goes south to Blackdown, then westward through Marley Common, Linchmere Common, Stanley Common and Chapel Common to Rake. South of Rake